Bank and fintech: How partnership is transforming the auto lending market

Stronger together

The global financial market is gradually changing its traditional development model: instead of building all the infrastructure themselves, banks are engaging technology partners. This allows them to launch products faster, automate processes and scale their businesses without unnecessary operating costs.

For Kazakhstan, this approach is particularly relevant in auto lending. According to the First Credit Bureau, the market grew by almost 44% over two years, from 2023 to 2025, reaching 2.39 trillion tenge. Amid growing demand, competitive advantage is determined not only by loan terms but also by how quickly and easily customers can obtain financing.

From application to car purchase — a digital process

Bank RBK and Sapa Digital Finance (SDF) have been cooperating since 2023. The partners have combined their competencies: the bank provides the financial component and sets lending parameters, while SDF is responsible for technological support, process automation and interaction with customers and partners.

“Today, a bank’s competitiveness is determined, among other things, by its ability to quickly turn technology into tangible benefits for customers. Our partnership with Sapa Digital Finance allows us to leverage an established technological infrastructure, scale our auto lending business and make the financing process more convenient. This is an example of how combining expertise helps create products that meet market demand and develop business,” says Natalya Akentyeva, Chairwoman of the Management Board of Bank RBK.

Since the partnership began, 65,000 Kazakhstanis have received auto loans. SDF’s technological platform brings together all participants in the process within a single digital environment, providing access to financing through a partner network across different regions of the country.

Loan applications are assessed in real time using artificial intelligence, while the loan application process, including collateral registration, can be completed on the same day. This is particularly important for those who need a vehicle not only for personal use but also for work: more than 10,000 auto loans have been issued to individual entrepreneurs over the course of the partnership.

At the same time, lending speed should not come at the expense of loan portfolio quality. Amid increased market attention to the quality of auto loans, modern credit scoring models play a particularly important role, allowing lenders to comprehensively assess borrowers’ creditworthiness and determine credit risk levels more accurately. Their application helps make well-informed lending decisions, combining access to financing with a responsible approach to loan portfolio management. Technology therefore not only speeds up processes but also enhances the quality of lending decisions.

Another area of cooperation is subsidizing the purchase of domestically manufactured vehicles, which helps make them more affordable for buyers and supports demand for cars assembled in Kazakhstan.

Technology at the service of customers

“For us, the importance of technology lies primarily in how it helps people. Today, customers want not only to obtain an auto loan on favorable terms but also to complete the process quickly, conveniently and without unnecessary complications. Together with Bank RBK, we have combined the bank’s reliability, our AI-based technologies and an extensive network of car dealerships to make the car-buying process simpler and more accessible. The use of AI helps us accelerate processes, reduce waiting times and offer customers more convenient services. Behind the 65,000 auto loans issued are real people, their needs and their plans. For us, this is the main result of the partnership and confirmation that modern technology should, above all, serve the interests of people,” says Yeldar Tenizbayev, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Sapa Digital Finance.

The partnership between Bank RBK and SDF reflects a key trend in the financial market: technology delivers the greatest impact when combined with banking expertise. The bank gains opportunities to scale its lending operations, the fintech partner provides the technological foundation, and customers benefit from simpler and faster access to financing.

This is precisely the new logic of the financial business: rather than building everything independently, partners combine their strengths to offer customers higher-quality and more accessible solutions.

Bank RBK is one of Kazakhstan’s largest commercial banks, ranking 5th in terms of corporate loan portfolio size, 7th in total assets and 10th in equity.

Sapa Group is a Kazakhstan-based technology group of companies developing solutions in fintech, artificial intelligence and business process automation.

Earlier, Qazinform News Agency reported that Bank RBK led Kazakhstan’s banks in term deposit growth, recording a 47.8% year-on-year increase.

License No. 1.1.821.135, issued by the Agency for Regulation and Development of the Financial Market of the Republic of Kazakhstan on July 15, 2026.