REGULATION | The Kenya Crypto Regulation is Unique and We’ll See It Adopted Across East Africa, Says Yellow Card Senior Legal Counsel

In a recent interview, Edline E. Murungi, Senior Legal Counsel for East Africa at Yellow Card, has shared her views on the upcoming crypto regulation in Kenya.

According to Murungi, the Kenyan law is the first to incorporate regulates from both the capital markets space (Capital Markets Authority of Kenya) and the payments space (Central Bank of Kenya), a testament to the use cases of cryptocurrencies beyond just the general trading and investment space.

According to Murungi:

“99% of the transactions are in stablecoins within the cryptocurrency industry. When that shift happens, we realized that people don’t do cryptocurrencies for investments. They are facilitating payments, and most times, cross-border payments. So we shifted.

If you look at investment laws, they are very different from payment systems laws. Payment systems and money moving across borders is usually Central Banks. They are the ones who want to know, how much money came int the country, how much money left. How many dollars do we have? How many Kenya Shillings do we have? Its the role of the Central Bank [of Kenya].”

Murungi goes on to show how the upcoming regulation will be impactful across the region.

“That approach of both the CBK [Central Bank of Kenya] and the CMA [Capital Markets Authority of Kenya] has actually been adopted by Rwanda, its probably going to be adopted by Uganda. We all know how the laws around the region move. They are always similar and since Kenya is always the first, they’re like, aw, its the first, its great, its good, why should we redo it?

So, you will see around the region [regulation] having both the Central Bank[s] and Capital Markets Authorities. That is not the same with other countries.”

Murungi’s viewpoint aligns with a recent editorial published by BitKE which highlighted the effect of the crypto regulation in Kenya within the region. In the post, BitKE cautions on the need to be alert on crypto regulatory capture, as has been reported in Kenya, and the risks it could impose within the region.

Kenya is a leader in cross-border payments, remittances, and regional fintech expansion. But if crypto regulation becomes a gatekeeping tool – influenced by legacy banks or political actors – regional startups will suffer.

Licensing regimes and compliance costs shaped by capture don’t just hurt Kenyan companies; they make it harder for Rwandan, Ugandan, or Tanzanian fintechs to plug into the Kenyan market – ultimately slowing regional growth and financial inclusion.

The Competition Authority of Kenya has likewise highlighted the need for regional cooperation to ensure fair competitiveness within the region.

The regulatory body has proposed competition rules that include tough penalties to ensure the region is protected from unfair market practices.

Murungi goes on to talk about Anti-Money Laundering (AML) laws and how different countries within the region have tackled this challenge. She noted that Kenya has lagged behind in this aspect despite cryptocurrencies being used for sometime now.

The legal counsel goes on to also talk about fair taxation and why the recent update on how to tax gains was the right approach.

Murungi also touches on the recent partnership of Yellow Card with VISA and the U.S. GENIUS Act providing an interesting viewpoint from a regulatory angle.

Murungi concludes by saying:

“I feel like we’re going to move towards where money and doing business and moving things is so easy. The entire ecosystem will be intertwined. It will be like one fluid ecosystem.”

Watch the full interview below:

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