![[Kenya] CBK to publish regulations for digital lenders by March 2022](Images/Key Logos/CBK.jpg)
[Kenya] CBK to publish regulations for digital lenders by March 2022
The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) will publish regulations governing the operations of Digital Credit Providers (popularly known as ‘mobile loan apps’) by March 23, 2022.
The announcement comes three months after the draft regulations were developed and released to the public for comments and further input.
This follows Presidential assent on the Central Bank of Kenya (Amendment) Act, 2021 on December 7, 2021. The Amendment provides the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) with the powers to license and oversight the previously unregulated digital credit providers.
‘’With the recent advances in technology and ongoing innovations, lending through digital channels, particularly mobile phones, has grown significantly in Kenya,’’ CBK said in a statement.
‘’ However, concerns have been raised by the public about the predatory practices of the unregulated digital credit providers, and in particular, their high cost, unethical debt collection practices, and the abuse of personal information.’’ the statement read.
The Amendment requires CBK to publish Regulations within three months, i.e by March 23, 2022, and accordingly CBK says it has developed the draft Regulations for public consultation.
‘’The Regulations provide for inter alia the licensing, governance, and credit operations of Digital Credit Providers (DCPs). They further provide for consumer protection, credit information sharing, and elaborate on the Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) obligations of DCPs.’’ CBK said.
In line with the public participation requirements, CBK has invited interested members of the public to provide comments on the draft Regulations that can be downloaded from the Central Bank of Kenya website. Additionally, in order to facilitate an orderly transition to a regulated environment, CBK has also requests all (unregulated) DCPs to provide their business details by January 21, 2022.
