Crypto exchanges in Kenya now have a formal way to fight back. Under newly gazetted rules, any exchange, wallet provider or licenced firm can challenge a regulator’s decision instead of simply accepting it.
The right covers several situations. A firm can appeal if its licence application is refused. It can also appeal if any other application or appointment is turned down. And it can appeal if a regulator moves to amend, suspend or revoke its licence. In each case, the appeal goes to what the law calls a “relevant body.” This can be a court, a tribunal or a committee set up under Kenyan law to hear such cases.
The rules were published under Legal Notice No. 134, in Kenya Gazette Supplement No. 185. They complete the rollout of the Virtual Asset Service Providers Act, which President William Ruto signed into law in October 2025. Two regulators now share oversight of the sector. The Central Bank of Kenya supervises virtual asset to fiat conversion and stablecoin issuers. Meanwhile, the Capital Markets Authority regulates exchanges, token issuance platforms, initial coin offerings and tokenisation activities.
This split matters for how appeals will actually work. A firm disputing a Central Bank decision on stablecoins, for example, would likely follow a different track than one challenging a Capital Markets Authority ruling on an exchange licence. Still, both fall under the same overall appeal right.
This move answers a demand that industry players raised months earlier. During public consultations, the Virtual Asset Association of Kenya pushed regulators to change course. The group, which represents about 50 crypto firms, wanted open-ended regulatory powers turned into clear, transparent processes. Its chief executive, Robert Salim, argued that firms needed written reasons for tough decisions. They also needed clear timelines, a right to be heard, and independent appeal routes before regulators could freeze assets or revoke licences.
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Without these safeguards, Salim warned, wide regulatory powers could push legitimate businesses offshore rather than protect the market. The final rules appear to reflect at least part of that concern, since they now build a formal appeal process directly into the framework.
However, this new appeal right lands alongside some of the toughest enforcement powers Kenya’s crypto sector has ever seen. The same rules let investigators seize hardware wallets and seed phrase backups tied to investigations. They also let authorities freeze accounts through orders issued to licenced providers. On top of that, exchanges can no longer list stablecoins that lack Central Bank approval. This could force offshore issuers like Tether and Circle to work through licenced Kenyan entities if they want to stay available locally.
Together, these rules give regulators much more reach into how crypto firms operate. At the same time, they give firms a clear channel to push back when a decision feels wrong. Even so, industry watchers say the real test comes once actual disputes start moving through the system. That’s because the rules don’t specify exactly which court, tribunal or committee will handle each type of case.
Existing crypto operators in Kenya have until November 4, 2026 to fall in line with the new licencing regime. This deadline comes from the underlying Act itself. Kenya remains one of East Africa’s largest digital asset markets, recording roughly 19 billion dollars in crypto inflows between July 2024 and June 2025, according to blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis. So how smoothly this appeal process works could shape how exchanges and investors judge the credibility of the entire system.
