The paper examines the entrepreneurial and charitable activities of the commercial and industrial bourgeoisie in Kazakhstan, special attention is paid to the process of creating a railway and the development of electricity.

The authors adhere to the position that merchants played a major role in the development of foreign suburbs in the second half of the XIX century. In those distant times, merchants were often the founders of the trade infrastructure, they opened trading houses, printing houses, distilleries and breweries, steam and flour mills, and were also at the origins of the promotion of railway construction, the development of shipping, gold industry, etc. In addition, such fruits of civilization as electricity, water supply, telephony, have also become largely accessible to Kazakh society thanks to the trading activities of merchants. The activity of merchants also contributed to the progress of educational activities in the Kazakh steppe, since merchants invested a lot of financial resources, acted as patrons in the construction and maintenance of public schools, schools, medical institutions, libraries, etc.