The International Monetary Fund (IMF) wants Kenya to require crypto platforms to collect and share users’ identity details when processing cryptocurrency transfers. The recommendation aims to strengthen efforts to detect money laundering and other financial crimes.
In its latest assessment of Kenya’s crypto regulations, the IMF identified gaps in the country’s implementation of international anti-money laundering standards. It wants the government to introduce the Financial Action Task Force’s (FATF) Travel Rule for virtual asset transactions.
Under the proposed requirement, crypto platforms would collect, verify and securely transmit information about people sending and receiving digital assets.
The information would include customers’ names, account details, physical addresses or national identification numbers, as well as relevant wallet addresses.
The IMF wants Kenya to incorporate these requirements into its Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASP) Regulations or another appropriate legal instrument without delay.
IMF Wants Kenya Crypto Platforms to Adopt the Travel Rule
The Travel Rule is an international standard developed by FATF to improve transparency in financial transactions involving virtual assets.
It requires regulated crypto service providers to exchange identifying information when customers transfer digital assets between platforms.
For example, when a customer sends cryptocurrency from one exchange to another, the sending platform must collect and verify the sender’s details. It must then securely transmit the required information to the receiving platform.
The receiving platform must also obtain information about the beneficiary.
These details help financial institutions establish who initiated a transaction and who received the funds. They can also screen transactions against sanctions lists and identify suspicious activity.
The IMF says Kenya has a significant gap in meeting FATF’s information-sharing requirements for crypto transfers.
It believes introducing the Travel Rule would help regulated platforms identify suspicious transactions and report them to the Financial Reporting Centre (FRC), Kenya’s financial intelligence unit.
Importantly, the proposal concerns information sharing between regulated service providers and relevant authorities. It does not mean that every cryptocurrency transaction or personal wallet address would automatically become publicly accessible.
Kenya Already Requires Crypto Platforms to Identify Customers
The IMF’s recommendation builds on Kenya’s existing digital asset regulations.
The country introduced the Virtual Asset Service Providers Act, 2025, to establish a legal framework for cryptocurrency businesses. The framework assigns regulatory responsibilities to the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) and the Capital Markets Authority (CMA).
The regulations require service providers to meet customer identification, recordkeeping and compliance obligations.
However, the IMF says Kenya needs an additional legal requirement compelling platforms to transmit customer information when digital assets move between service providers.
This distinction is important. Keeping customer records is not the same as securely sharing the required information with another platform during a transfer.
The proposed Travel Rule would close that gap and improve the ability of regulators and financial institutions to trace transactions across platforms.
Why the IMF Wants Stronger Crypto Monitoring in Kenya
The recommendation comes as cryptocurrency use expands across Kenya.
Blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis estimated that Kenyans transferred approximately KSh740 billion ($5.7 billion) in cryptocurrency during the year to June 2026.
The growth made Kenya Africa’s third-largest cryptocurrency market, behind South Africa and Nigeria.
Stablecoins account for a significant share of the country’s crypto activity. Individuals and businesses use them for cross-border payments, remittances and international trade.
However, the IMF has also raised concerns about peer-to-peer (P2P) transactions.
P2P trading allows individuals to buy and sell cryptocurrencies directly, sometimes without using a regulated exchange as an intermediary. While this can make transactions more accessible, it can also create challenges when participants trade with unknown counterparties.
The IMF noted that market participants had identified widespread P2P activity as a factor contributing to scams in Kenya.
Without reliable customer information, investigating fraudulent transfers and identifying the people involved can become more difficult.
The proposed Travel Rule would strengthen oversight of transactions handled by regulated platforms.
Kenya’s FATF Grey List Adds Pressure for Reform
Kenya’s efforts to strengthen crypto monitoring also form part of its wider response to international financial crime concerns.
FATF placed the country on its grey list in February 2024 because of weaknesses in its anti-money laundering and counterterrorism financing framework.
Countries on the list are subject to increased monitoring while they address identified deficiencies.
The IMF believes stronger information-sharing requirements for crypto transactions would help Kenya meet international standards.
The Travel Rule would also improve cooperation between cryptocurrency platforms and financial institutions involved in digital asset transfers.
For Kenya, closing these gaps could support its broader efforts to strengthen financial supervision and address concerns about illicit financial flows.
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What the IMF Recommendation Means for Crypto Users and Exchanges
If Kenya implements the recommendation, regulated crypto platforms will face additional compliance responsibilities.
Exchanges and other covered service providers may need to upgrade their identity verification systems, transaction monitoring tools and secure information-sharing processes.
Users transferring cryptocurrency between regulated platforms may also need to provide more identifying information before completing transactions.
The requirements could make some transfers more demanding, particularly for customers who value the relative privacy of cryptocurrency transactions.
However, the proposed rules are not a ban on cryptocurrency trading. Their main purpose is to make transactions involving regulated service providers easier to trace and investigate.
The changes will also depend on how Kenyan authorities implement the recommendation, including the safeguards they establish for customers’ personal information.
With cryptocurrency activity growing in the country, the IMF wants Kenya to strengthen oversight before gaps in transaction monitoring become harder to address.
