About aix

Mr. Bennett was behind the launch of AIX in 2018 and served as CEO till 2021. Previously he was the CEO of NZX, the operator of New Zealand’s securities and derivatives markets and provider of trading, post-trade and data services. Mr. Bennett led NZX through a period of significant organizational and regulatory change, including the replacement and upgrading of NZX’s trading and clearing systems, and the launch of 23 ETFs through NZX Funds Management. Prior to joining NZX, Mr. Bennett was a Partner at Oliver Wyman and Boston Consulting Group in Asia. Mr. Bennett holds an MBA from the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania and a BCA from Victoria University of Wellington

Assel Mukazhanova has served as CEO of AIX since September 2023, following her tenure as Chief Markets and Products Officer and Member of the Management Board. With over 30 years of experience in banking and capital markets, she began her career in banking at a foreign exchange operations department of one of the Kazakh banks. Over time, she progressed into leadership roles focused on the bank’s international business ultimately serving as Executive Director overseeing investor relations, debt and equity markets, strategy projects and M&A. Ms. Mukazhanova has extensive experience working with the international business community. She has played a key role in numerous milestone transactions, including syndicated loans, Eurobond issuances (both public and private placements), ABS transactions. Her leadership extended to major M&A deals and strategic development initiatives. She was a part of the team that brought in a strategic investor, (EBRD) ahead of the first international IPO of a largest bank of Kazakhstan. Assel Mukazhanova holds a degree in International Business from the Kazakh Academy of Management and has completed executive programs at London and Harvard Business Schools.

Mr. Kussainov has an extensive work experience – prior to joining AIFC, he held the position of the Deputy Chairman of the National Bank of Kazakhstan for two years, headed the Development Bank of Kazakhstan, worked as a managing partner in the Al Falah Partners direct investment fund, headed the “Center for Marketing and Analytical Research” JSC, was an adviser to the Minister of Economy and Budget Planning of the Republic of Kazakhstan, and led a special group of the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Republic of Kazakhstan on accession to the World Trade Organization in Geneva. He graduated from the Kazakh State Academy of Management and Stanford Business School.

Mrs. Janet Heckman was the Managing Director for the Southern and Eastern Mediterranean (SEMED) Region at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) from February 2017 until December 2019. Based in Cairo, she was also the Country Head for Egypt. Mrs. Heckman joined the EBRD in Almaty in July 2012 from Citi as Director, Head of Kazakhstan and appointed as an independent Air Astana Board Director in 2019. During her long career at Citi, she spent time as EMEA Corporate and Investment Managing Director and held a number of field roles across EMEA, and was responsible for Global Relationship Banking across CEMEA. Mrs. Heckman holds a Master’s of Science in Foreign Service with distinction from Georgetown University, Washington, D.C. and a BA in History from Kenyon College, Ohio. She also studied at the American University of Beirut, Lebanon.

Vice Chair of the Global Business Committee, Shanghai Stock Exchange Dr. Fu holds Ph.D. in Finance from Fudan University, and Master’s degree in Economics, Bachelor’s degree in International Trade from Sichuan University, China. He also serves as the Managing Director of the Global Business Development Department and Leader of the Free Trade Zone Trading Platform Preparation team of Shanghai Stock Exchange. Dr. Fu has received awards for Shanghai Financial leading talent (2017) and Shanghai Financial Innovative Figure (2014).

Patrick O’Brien is the founding partner of Blizzard Partners Limited, a UK-based investment and advisory boutique with interests in the UK and Asia.
Patrick currently sits on the Advisory Boards of a number of companies & funds.
Prior to that, he spent over six years as a Partner of ADM Capital LLP based in London. Patrick joined ADM Capital from UBS Investment Bank which he left after 21 years, most recently as the Head of European Debt Capital Markets responsible for financing and risk management activities of the bank in Europe.
His investment experience includes early stage, growth, and opportunistic investment, taking both majority and minority positions across a wide range of sectors including technology, consumer, healthcare, agriculture, manufacturing, renewable energy, leisure, real estate, transportation, and education.
Patrick has an LLB (Hons) from University College London.

Assel Mukazhanova has served as CEO of AIX since September 2023, following her tenure as Chief Markets and Products Officer and Member of the Management Board. With over 30 years of experience in banking and capital markets, she began her career in banking at a foreign exchange operations department of one of the Kazakh banks. Over time, she progressed into leadership roles focused on the bank’s international business ultimately serving as Executive Director overseeing investor relations, debt and equity markets, strategy projects and M&A. Ms. Mukazhanova has extensive experience working with the international business community. She has played a key role in numerous milestone transactions, including syndicated loans, Eurobond issuances (both public and private placements), ABS transactions. Her leadership extended to major M&A deals and strategic development initiatives. She was a part of the team that brought in a strategic investor, (EBRD) ahead of the first international IPO of a largest bank of Kazakhstan. Assel Mukazhanova holds a degree in International Business from the Kazakh Academy of Management and has completed executive programs at London and Harvard Business Schools.

Zharas Mussabekov has over 18 years of experience in financial services. Prior to becoming CFO, he was the Head of Fund Operation division. Before joining AIX, he led the Treasury Department at the National Company Kazakhstan Railways. Mr. Mussabekov also worked in the Baiterek National Management Holding’s corporate finance department and was involved in raising funds from the National Fund and the Republican budget. As an employee of the Development Bank of Kazakhstan, he participated in the Bank’s borrowings at debt capital markets and worked at the Bank’s Treasury. Zharas started his career as an auditor at Deloitte, in the Financial Services Industry. He holds a bachelor’s degree in finance from Eurasian National University named after L.N. Gumilyov.

Talgat is a seasoned IT Management professional with a 30-year career spanning banking, telecommunications, oil and gas, and mining industries. Most recently, he served as Country IT Officer at TotalEnergies Italy for three years. Prior to this, he held key IT leadership roles at TotalEnergies E&P, Maersk Olie & Gas, AMEC, and WorleyParsons across Kazakhstan, Denmark, UAE, and Singapore. With a strong foundation as a software developer, Talgat pioneered application of SMS technology in Kazakhstan (2006) and contributed to the nation’s first inter-banking payment system (1999). He also played a pivotal role in developing billing systems and interfaces for Kcell and Tele2. Talgat holds a MPhil degree from KAZGU, an MSc with Merit from the London Metropolitan University, and has completed executive programs at University of Northern London and Cambridge Judge Business School.

Olivier Gueris is a C-level Operations & Risk Management Executive with over twenty-five years of international experience within the Exchange industry. After 7+ years as COO of Qatar Stock Exchange, crowned with an upgrade from Frontier to Emerging Market from MSCI, FTSE and S&P, Mr. Gueris moved on to Kazakhstan where he initially advised the Astana International Financial Centre to set up Astana International Exchange (AIX) and become the financial hub of Central Asia and beyond. He also held senior management positions at Turquoise MTF, Boston Options Exchange (BOX), the Australian Derivatives Exchange (ADX), and Euronext Paris. Mr. Gueris holds a BA degree in Law from Université Panthéon Assas (Paris II).

Birzhan Astayev joined AIX in 2019 and was responsible for the development of products. In this capacity, he worked on several projects, including the launch of exchange traded notes, a mobile application, and the AIX Index. He has over 20 years of experience in the financial services industry. While working in the banking sector, he led various projects, including strategy development and implementation, fundraising and managing relationships with key stakeholders. He holds a bachelor's degree in finance from the Kazakh State Academy of Management, graduating with honors.