E-Money Issuer — Kenya

The Kenya category mapped to e-money issuance.

Authorization under the National Payment System Act (2011) / NPS Regulations (2014); may issue e-money and hold customer funds (core capital KES 20M).

Maintained: this official source is re-checked on a weekly schedule — last checked 2026-08-24 · unchanged since the previous check.

Licensed providers

9 entities

#	Provider	Status (as reported)	Licensed / granted	Source	Source date
1	Afrinet Global & Company Limited	authorized	2024-03-05	Central Bank of Kenya	2026-05-15
2	Airtel Money Kenya Limited	authorized	2022-01-21	Central Bank of Kenya	2026-05-15
3	Finserve Africa Limited	authorized	2022-01-01	Central Bank of Kenya	2026-05-15
4	Kashia Services Limited	authorized	2023-08-14	Central Bank of Kenya	2026-05-15
5	Safaricom PLC	authorized	2016-01-01	Central Bank of Kenya	2026-05-15
6	Telkom Kenya Limited	authorized	2018-01-01	Central Bank of Kenya	2026-05-15
7	Viewtech Limited	authorized	2021-09-15	Central Bank of Kenya	2026-05-15
8	Web Tribe Limited	authorized	2022-02-10	Central Bank of Kenya	2026-05-15
9	Whizmo Limited	authorized	2026-05-15	Central Bank of Kenya	2026-05-15

Licence requirements

What it takes to hold this licence, as stated in the cited official instruments. Capital and fees are shown in the currency the statute itself uses.

Requirement	As published	Source	Source date
Minimum capital	KES 20,000,000 (core capital) Verbatim “20,000,000.00 … A payment service provider… shall at the time of authorisation and at all times, hold a core capital as set out in the First Schedule.”	National Payment System Regulations, 2014 (Legal Notice 109 of 2014)	2022-12-31
Local presence / incorporation	A value has been located but not yet verified, so we don't publish it here.	—	—
Timeline	No fixed processing-time cap; Bank may request more info "within thirty days" (Reg 5(3)); certificate issued "within seven days of receipt of authorisation fees" (Reg 5(6)). Licence validity period: not specified in the Regulations (renewal exists under Reg 9 but no stated term). Verbatim “at least two months prior to the expiry of the authorisation … within thirty days … within seven days of receipt of authorisation fees”	National Payment System Regulations, 2014 (Legal Notice 109 of 2014)	2022-12-31
Local ownership	No such requirement: No local-shareholding percentage requirement in the Regulations.	National Payment System Regulations, 2014 (Legal Notice 109 of 2014)	2022-12-31
Fees	Application KES 5,000; Authorisation KES 1,000,000 Verbatim “5,000 … 1,000,000”	National Payment System Regulations, 2014 (Legal Notice 109 of 2014)	2022-12-31
Ongoing obligations	Trust Fund safeguarding of e-money float: Reg 25 — "ensure all monies received are held in a Trust Fund" and "balances in the Trust Fund shall not at any time be less than what is owed to customers"; monthly reporting Reg 29 ("within ten days of the end of every calendar month submit to the Bank"); AML/CFT Reg 60 (comply with "Proceeds of Crime and Anti-Money Laundering Act (Cap. 59A), and the Prevention of Terrorism Act (Cap. 59B)"); per-transaction limit Reg 43(1) "shall not exceed seventy thousand shillings and an aggregate monthly load limit of one million shillings"; renewal ≥2 months before expiry (Reg 9); core capital held "at all times" (Reg 11). Verbatim “ensure all monies received are held in a Trust Fund … balances in the Trust Fund shall not at any time be less than what is owed to customers … within ten days of the end of every calendar month submit to the Bank … Proceeds of Crime and Anti-Money Laundering Act (Cap. 59A), and the Prevention of Terrorism Act (Cap. 59B) … shall not exceed seventy thousand shillings and an aggregate monthly load limit of one million shillings … at all times”	National Payment System Regulations, 2014 (Legal Notice 109 of 2014)	2022-12-31

Requirements as published in the cited instruments — not legal or compliance advice. Where a value is located but not yet verified, we show that it exists but don't publish the figure. Verify directly with the regulator.

The equivalent in other markets

Categories mapped to the same normalized activity — fintech:EMONEY_ISSUE:

Cross-border rules for Kenya →