Verify customers to the wallet tier
Match the level of verification to the account's limits and risk, and step it up when a customer moves to a higher tier.
Financial services
Financial services / PSPs
Every wallet, agent and merchant is a door into the payment system.
Payment service providers, including e-money issuers, mobile money operators, payment gateways and remittance providers, are authorised and overseen by the CBK under the National Payment System framework. They carry customer, agent and merchant due-diligence obligations.
At a glance
Who sets the rules?
Primary regulator
Central Bank of Kenya (CBK)
Who this covers
E-money issuers, mobile money operators, payment gateways and aggregators, money remittance providers and their agent networks.
Regulations that apply
National Payment System Act, 2011
CBK authorisation and oversight of payment service providers and payment systems.
National Payment System Regulations, 2014
Requirements for PSPs, e-money issuers and agents, including customer identification, agent due diligence and transaction limits.
Money Remittance Regulations, 2013
Licensing and customer due diligence for remittance providers.
POCAMLA, 2009 and the Prevention of Terrorism Act, 2012
Customer due diligence, sanctions screening, transaction monitoring and suspicious-transaction reporting to the FRC.
Data Protection Act, 2019
Lawful processing of customer, agent and merchant identification data.
What you have to do
Vet agents and merchants
Verify agents and merchants and the people behind them before they can transact on your rails.
Monitor and report
Detect unusual patterns, screen counterparties, and report suspicious activity to the FRC.
Keep the evidence
Hold the identification record and the review decision for every customer, agent and merchant.
Fraud to watch for
Mule wallets
Wallets registered with borrowed or stolen IDs to move fraud proceeds.
SIM-swap takeovers
Fraudsters re-registering a victim's line to take over their wallet.
Merchant fronting
Legitimate-looking merchants processing payments for undisclosed businesses.
How Sentinel helps
- Tiered KYC that steps up verification as limits rise.
- KYB for agents and merchants, including the people who own them.
- Re-verification with liveness when an account changes hands or devices.
Related reading
23 October 2026 · 5 min read
Kenya and the FATF grey list: what it means for onboarding
Why increased monitoring raises the bar for customer due diligence at banks, SACCOs, PSPs and fintechs, and what a defensible onboarding record looks like.
Read the article 23 October 2026 · 4 min readDeepfakes and remote onboarding: what a liveness check has to prove
Face-swap video and replay attacks are now cheap. What institutions should expect from liveness and document checks, and why the record matters as much as the result.
Read the articleGeneral information, not legal advice. Last reviewed October 2026. Requirements change, so confirm the current position with the regulator or your counsel before relying on it.