Andrei Mikhnev is the World Bank Country Manager for Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan starting February 1, 2023. Mr. Mikhnev is leading the World Bank policy dialogue with counterparts in Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan, managing the country program and the team based in Astana.

Mr. Mikhnev has more than 20 years of international experience focusing on economic development. Most recently, he has led the World Bank Country Office in Mongolia. Prior to that he led programs in Middle East and the Gulf countries aimed at enhancing the competitiveness and private-sector led growth in that region. During his career he has been working on economic reforms in many countries in Latin America, Sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, Middle East and North Africa, Europe and Central Asia.

Mr. Mikhnev holds a Ph.D. degree in international economics from the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Ukraine.

Mr. Mikhnev, a Ukrainian national, is married and has a son. He speaks English, Ukrainian and Russian fluently and is conversant in Spanish.

Lyazzat Satieva has built a successful career in the banking sector, progressing from a sales manager in the Pavlodar branch of Kazkommertsbank to the head of one of Kazakhstan’s largest financial institutions, Eurasian Bank.

She possesses extensive expertise in working with businesses. For many years, she led the small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) banking division at Kazkommertsbank and later headed the corporate banking business at Forte. As Deputy Chair of BTA Bank, she was one of the key executives responsible for the integration of BTA Bank and Kazkommertsbank.

Today, together with her team, she is driving Eurasian Bank’s ambitious digital and technological transformation agenda, focused on implementing new financial solutions and enhancing the customer experience.

Aidos Zhumagulov, Member of the Board of Directors of Freedom Bank. Since June 2026, he has also held the position of Chief Banking Officer at Freedom Holding Corp., overseeing the development and strategic growth of all banking entities within the Holding. Digital banking expert with 20 years’ experience in the financial sector. Graduated from T. Ryskulov University and City Business School, has an MBA degree. Worked as the head of the retail department at Caspian Bank JSC, the director of the retail department at Nurbank JSC and Alliance Bank JSC, the director of the directorate at Russian Slavic Bank JSC and the managing director, member of the board at Bank of Astana JSC. Responsible for strategy and transformation at Freedom Bank. Unique products that have no analogues in Kazakhstan were launched under his leadership – Digital Mortgage, Digital Car Loan and Digital Business Loan. Since June 2026, he has also held the position of Chief Banking Officer at Freedom Holding Corp., overseeing the development and strategic growth of all banking entities within the Holding.

Assel Aitkhozhina serves as the EBRD’s Regional Policy Lead for Central Asia and Mongolia, based in Almaty, Kazakhstan. She oversees the Bank’s analytical work on economic and policy developments in the region, designs strategic policy priorities, and leads the implementation of key policy initiatives. In her role, she advises senior management and works closely with governments, international organisations and financial institutions to advance sustainable and inclusive economic growth.

Previously, Ms. Aitkhozhina was an Associate Director in the EBRD’s Food and Agribusiness team. She brings over 15 years of experience at the intersection of finance and development, specialising in structuring innovative financial solutions for clients across Central and Eastern Europe, Central Asia, Ukraine, and the MENA region. Her expertise spans primary agriculture, agro‑processing, food distribution and logistics, FMCG and retail, as well as soft‑commodity trading.

Ms. Aitkhozhina holds a Bachelor of Science in Economics from Kazakh State National University and a Master of International Affairs in International Banking and Finance from Columbia University in New York.

Elnur Sailaukul is a Member of the Management Board of Freedom Bank Kazakhstan JSC and an expert in banking risk management with 19 years of experience in the financial sector. He graduated from KIMEP University in 2008 with a Bachelor's degree in Finance.

Throughout his career, he has held various positions at banking sector in Kazakhstan. From 2017 to 2021, he worked at the National Bank of Kazakhstan and subsequently at the Agency of the Republic of Kazakhstan for Regulation and Development of the Financial Market. He joined Freedom Bank Kazakhstan in 2021 and was appointed a Member of the Management Board in 2026.

At Freedom Bank, he oversees enterprise risk management, the Anti-Fraud Center, the Validation Department, ESG management, and internal control.

Stanislav Vladimirovich Levin is a finance and corporate governance professional with more than 20 years of experience.

He graduated with honors from KIMEP University, earning a degree in Business Administration, Accounting and Auditing. He also holds the internationally recognized Certified Public Accountant (CPA US) designation, as well as the qualification of Professional Accountant of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

Mr. Levin began his career as a Risk Manager at one of Kazakhstan’s leading banks before moving into audit with a Big Four firm. He subsequently held senior leadership positions, including Chief Accountant of ForteBank and Member of the Management Board of ForteFinance. In addition to his corporate experience, he has a strong entrepreneurial background, having founded and managed his own business and participated in a number of startup ventures, including fintech projects.

He currently serves as Member of the Management Board - Managing Director (CFO) of ForteBank. His professional experience encompasses strategic financial management, business development, M&A transactions, process optimization, and the implementation of modern management solutions. He places a strong emphasis on operational efficiency, sustainable growth, and strong team leadership.

Henry MacNevin, who is based in London, is currently an Executive Director - Ratings, Financial Institutions Group responsible for bank ratings in the Middle-East, South-Eastern Europe and Turkey, and is also responsible for Moody’s global Islamic Finance initiatives. Mr MacNevin joined Moody’s London-based banking team in October 1996, initially as lead analyst for bank in Italy, the United Kingdom, the Nordic region, Belgium, Luxembourg and Hungary, and has also worked as a backup analyst for other banking systems, principally in Europe. He was also previously responsible Associate Managing Director for Moody’s bank ratings in Italy and the CEE region and was the Country Manager for Moody’s in Italy for several years. 

Mr. MacNevin’s previous banking experience includes seven years with the Barclaysgroup, where he held positions in strategic planning, corporate banking, and credit risk management.Mr. MacNevin earned a B.A. (Hons) in Business Studies from PortsmouthPolytechnic in the United Kingdom

Marcus Yiu is an Assistant Vice President within Moody’s Sovereign Risk Group. Based in Singapore, he covers a portfolio of sovereign credits in the Asia Pacific and Central Asia regions.

Marcus joined Moody’s in January 2020, after working at J.P. Morgan Asset Management as a Market Analyst based in Hong Kong. There, he performed macroeconomic and market research with a focus on Asia and took part in generating asset allocation ideas for clients.

Marcus graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Economics from the University of Warwick.

Alma brings over 15 years of experience in corporate and investment banking as well as capital markets, having held senior roles at both international and regional financial institutions. Her deep understanding of the Central Asian financial landscape and her track record in building client relationships and navigating complex regulatory environments make her a fantastic fit for this role.

Marat is a Vice President in the DeFi and Digital Assets team (DFDA), where his primary responsibilities include blockchain analysis, digital asset risk assessment, and integration of blockchain infrastructure. Since joining Moody’s in 2014, Marat has worked in areas of data management and data analytics. In his previous role, he successfully led a team of financial data analysts covering Structured Finance. Concurrently, he has been involved in the blockchain space since 2016. Marat holds a degree in Applied Mathematics and Master's in Economics.

Vladlen Kuznetsov is a Vice President at Moody’s Ratings, based in Dubai. He covers a portfolio of banks and other financial institutions in the CIS countries in the Financial Institutions Group. Vladlen has an extensive background of almost 20 years in credit risk analysis of banks and other financial institutions, regional and local governments and entities related to local and central governments.

Vladlen joined Moody’s in 2006. Prior to joining Moody’s, he had worked for Fitch Ratings in Moscow covering banks and other financial institutions in Russia and other CIS countries. Before that, Vladlen worked for Ernst & Young and Arthur Andersen in Moscow with experience in banking audits since 1998.

Vladlen holds Master’s degree in engineering and economics from the Moscow Aviation Institute (National Research University) in Moscow. He is also a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) and a holder of Financial Risk Manager (FRM) and Sustainability Climate Risk (SCR) charters from GARP (General Association of Risk Professionals).

Lev is a Vice President at Moody’s Dubai office (UAE), covering financial institutions including Insurance companies and banks in Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Saudi Arabia, Armenia and Azerbaijan.

Prior to joining Dubai office in 2022, he worked for Moody’s Financial Institutions Group in Moscow, Russia and for Moody’s Credit Policy research group in New York. Lev holds an MBA in finance from Zicklyn School of Business (New York), and BBA degree in finance from Baruch College CUNY (New York).

Linus Silfverduk is Executive Director, Head of Relationship Management Northern, Central and Eastern Europe. Moody's Ratings maintains approximately 500 existing rating relationships across the region from various sectors such as corporates, financials, sovereign, sub-sovereign, and infrastructure. The coverage teams, based out of Stockholm, Frankfurt and Zurich, as well as Eastern Europe and Central Asia, are responsible for account management, business development and engagement with local rating advisers and other intermediaries.

Linus is also Moody’s Ratings Country Manager for Sweden and Director of the Nordic subsidiary, Moody’s Investors Service (Nordics AB). He is Executive Sponsor for the Nordic Inclusion Group.

Prior to joining Moody’s in early 2017, Linus worked ten years for Nordea Bank, from 2010 in the Corporate & Investment Banking division, covering a portfolio of Swedish global manufacturing companies. Linus has a master’s degree in Business Administration from Stockholm School of Economics.