The lenders did not say how much PNB had paid for the stake.

"The joint bank plans to focus on financing small and medium-sized businesses in Kazakhstan, particularly in the agricultural sector," they said in a statement.

Kazakhstan's banking regulator said last year Danabank, along with several other Kazakh lenders, needed to boost its capital to keep its banking license. Danabank had assets of about $20 million at the beginning of this year.

Source: Reuters