The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is pushing Kenya to tighten surveillance of cryptocurrency transactions by requiring digital asset platforms to collect and share identifying information about people sending and receiving virtual currencies.
The proposal would require crypto exchanges and other virtual asset service providers to disclose customer details, including names, physical addresses, national identification numbers and wallet information, to counterpart platforms and Kenya's Financial Reporting Centre (FRC).
In its latest recommendations on Kenya's cryptocurrency regulations, the IMF identified a significant gap in the country's framework: the absence of a binding requirement for crypto platforms to exchange customer information whenever digital assets move between accounts.
The Fund wants Kenya to implement the Financial Action Task Force's (FATF) Travel Rule, an international anti-money laundering standard requiring financial institutions and cryptocurrency platforms to transmit information about the originator and beneficiary of transactions.
Under the proposed arrangement, a platform processing a transfer would have to verify the sender's identity and securely transmit the required details to the receiving platform. The recipient's information would also need to be collected and verified.
The information would enable exchanges to screen transactions against sanctions lists, identify suspicious transfers and report potential financial crimes to the FRC.
The IMF says the requirement should be incorporated into Kenya's Virtual Asset Service Providers regulations or another appropriate legal instrument without delay.
The recommendation comes as cryptocurrency adoption accelerates in Kenya. Data from blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis shows that Kenyans transferred approximately KSh740 billion worth of cryptocurrencies in the 12 months to June 2026.
The activity has made Kenya Africa's third-largest cryptocurrency economy, behind South Africa and Nigeria.
Stablecoins, whose values are linked to conventional currencies such as the US dollar, account for a substantial share of local transactions. Businesses and individuals use them for cross-border payments, remittances and protection against fluctuations in the shilling.
However, the IMF has raised concerns about peer-to-peer transactions, which it says have contributed to scams and created challenges for financial crime investigations.
The proposal would also make it harder for traders to rely on the relative anonymity of cryptocurrency transactions, potentially increasing compliance requirements for exchanges and their customers.
Kenya has already introduced the Virtual Asset Service Providers Act, 2025, establishing a framework for regulating companies operating in the digital asset market under the oversight of the Central Bank of Kenya and the Capital Markets Authority.
The country has also been working to address deficiencies identified by FATF, which placed it under increased monitoring in February 2024 over weaknesses in combating money laundering and terrorism financing.
The IMF's latest recommendation adds pressure on regulators to close remaining gaps in the cryptocurrency framework as the government seeks to strengthen the country's financial integrity.
The proposed Travel Rule requirements are intended to improve traceability rather than prohibit cryptocurrency trading. However, their implementation could change how exchanges handle customer information and cross-border digital asset transfers.
