Benchmarking Comparison of Financial Performance and Risk Resilience in the Digital Transformation of Banking: A Comparative Study of China and Kazakhstan

Abstract

The global digital transformation of banking has a dual impact on financial performance and risk resilience, and its effects vary depending on the stage of technology adoption and infrastructure endowments of different countries. This study constructs a three-dimensional alignment framework that includes financial efficiency, risk buffers, and digital penetration, and it conducts a benchmarking comparison of the banking industries in China and Kazakhstan. The research shows that China's banking industry features a combination of a downward trend in net interest margins and a structural increase in non-interest income, and its risk resilience is reflected in a stable capital adequacy ratio and enhanced continuity in credit risk monitoring. Kazakhstan's banking industry maintains a relatively high net interest margin but with significant fluctuations, and it has a lower elasticity in the cost-to-income ratio, while its risk resilience is constrained by insufficient thickness of credit data and external dependence of the financing structure. This study provides cross-country comparative evidence on the digital effects of transitional economies and emerging markets.