Fintech · Industry brief

The Central Bank of Kenya has substantially expanded its register of licensed digital credit providers, formalizing a previously unregulated market and establishing a supervisory regime with direct enforcement consequences. The licensing regime imposes continuing compliance obligations spanning pricing transparency, data protection, fair debt-collection practices, anti-money-laundering controls and periodic reporting to the regulator. The regulator's near-term enforcement focus is expected to concentrate on three areas: pricing transparency, unlawful or abusive collection conduct, and data-protection breaches, with administrative sanctions, licence suspension or revocation available for serious breaches. As the licensed sector grows, dispute volume is expected to increase as borrowers gain access to defined complaints processes and enforceable consumer protections, with patterns of complaints informing broader supervisory action and potential enforcement priorities.

Nigeria and South Africa exited the FATF grey list in October 2025 after completing their AML/CFT action plans. Nigeria established a coordinated virtual asset regulatory framework through an Executive Order signed by President Tinubu, creating the Virtual Asset Council chaired by the Central Bank of Nigeria with the Nigeria Revenue Service and Securities and Exchange Commission as vice-chairs. Kenya gazetted its Virtual Asset Service Providers Regulations 2026 (Legal Notice No. 134 of 2026) in July, establishing licensing requirements under the VASP Act 2025 supervised by the Central Bank of Kenya and Capital Markets Authority. South Africa brought crypto assets under its Financial Sector Conduct Authority licensing framework under the FAIS Act, and was removed from the EU's high-risk third-country list in January 2026. Ghana established a statutory framework through the Virtual Asset Service Providers Act 2025, with the Securities and Exchange Commission and Bank of Ghana implementing sandbox testing and activity-specific licensing during 2026. These regulatory developments require fintechs operating in these markets to obtain appropriate licenses, implement KYC/CDD controls, comply with transaction monitoring, and implement FATF Travel Rule requirements or face enforcement action and banking relationship difficulties.