The fintech company Tarlan Payments has announced the completion of the purchase of the Kazakh Gourmet foodtech platform. The updated Gourmet by Tarlan service will expand the capabilities of banks to work with offline businesses. Cooperation with banks in Kazakhstan and Europe is planned.

The fintech company Tarlan Payments has completed the acquisition of the Gourmet foodtech platform. The service allows users to book tables, pre-order and pay for food directly in mobile banking applications, use cashback and loyalty programs.

Gourmet is focused on the full-service restaurant segment. The integration of the service has become part of Tarlan's strategy to develop the Banking-as-a-Platform (BaaP) format, in which the bank becomes an entry point into everyday digital services. As part of the integration, bank users will be able to pay for restaurants without leaving banking applications with additional cashbacks and discounts, and banks will gain more knowledge about their users' preferences. 

"We are providing banks with the opportunity to turn a mobile banking application into a full-fledged digital ecosystem where users can solve not only financial but also everyday tasks, from ordering food to buying tickets. By combining our expertise in payments and scaling with the innovative Gourmet platform, we are going to build a single ecosystem in Kazakhstan and Europe where financial and lifestyle services complement each other," commented Andrey Sedenko, CEO of Tarlan Payments.

At the time of the transaction, the service is integrated with more than 20 restaurants in Almaty and Astana (including restaurants of the medium and premium segment). By the end of 2025, it is planned to connect 150 establishments in different cities of the country, in 2026 — at least 250, including international chains. According to forecasts, orders worth over 60 billion rubles will be processed through Gourmet banking applications during the first year, and many times more in the future as new banks and regions are connected. The expected number of users of the platform is more than 600,000 per year.

As a result of the deal, the service will be renamed Gourmet by Tarlan. The product will continue to develop under the leadership of its founders, Serikbolsin Mustafin, CEO, and Chingiz Dzhakubaliev, CTO. 

"We created Gourmet as an alternative to aggregators with high commissions. Our model is more transparent and beneficial for both restaurants and users. Together with Tarlan Payments, we will be able to scale this idea," said Serikbolsin Mustafin, CEO of Gourmet.

"The technology should be invisible but useful. Everything works inside the banking application — it's convenient for everyone," added Chingiz Dzhakubaliev, Technical Director of Gourmet.

According to the company's representatives, Gourmet by Tarlan will solve several market problems at once: high aggregator fees, low user engagement in banking applications, and limited digital capabilities of the restaurants themselves. The platform provides direct integration between banks and restaurants, offering the latter access to a paying audience and automated marketing and loyalty tools.

According to open data, in 2024, the volume of the restaurant market in Kazakhstan amounted to 1.3 trillion rubles, of which over 600 billion rubles accounted for the premium and casual segments. According to Tarlan Payments, these users most often expect convenient digital solutions without intermediaries and are ready to use the banking application as a single interface for payments and daily activities.Currently, the Kazakh market has services from major horeca players offering digital solutions for the restaurant business. However, Gourmet by Tarlan will be the first solution that integrates restaurant services directly into banking applications, forming a fundamentally new approach to the interaction of banks with the restaurant sector. This makes it possible to bypass traditional intermediaries and create a direct channel between financial institutions and catering establishments.

Tarlan Payments clarifies that Gourmet has become the first element of the company's ecosystem fintech business. In the future, the range of solutions for banks based on the Banking-as-a-Platform (BaaP) model will be expanded. The company is preparing the integration of other services, from marketplaces and products to urban and infrastructure services (parking, utilities, gas stations, and others).

About the companies:

Tarlan Payments is a Kazakhstani Fintech company providing comprehensive and integrated solutions for business development. The company cooperates with the largest banks in the country – Halyk, Jusan and Kaspi. More than 20 million transactions pass through the system every month. 

Gourmet — foodtech is a restaurant solution and aggregator integrated into banks' mobile applications. The product works in the in-app format and allows users to order, reserve tables and arrange delivery of meals from restaurants directly through mobile banking applications.