Capital Markets Authority

What Capital Markets Authority does

Capital Markets Authority (CMA) is Kenya's statutory regulator for capital markets, established in 1989 under the Capital Markets Act Cap 485A and headquartered at Embankment Plaza, Upperhill, Nairobi. CMA is mandated to regulate and develop orderly, fair, and efficient capital markets, with responsibilities spanning licensing and supervision of capital market intermediaries (investment banks, stockbrokers, fund managers, investment advisors, forex brokers, corporate trustees, and coffee brokers), approval of public offerings of securities, oversight of collective investment schemes, and — since October 2025 — joint regulation of Virtual Asset Service Providers under the VASP Act.

CMA operates a portfolio of digital platforms in support of its mandate: the CMA App, NSE App, and Dosikaa App for mobile investor access; an Online Services Portal (onlineservices.cma.or.ke) and eCitizen portal (cma.ecitizen.go.ke) for licensing and compliance reporting; a Regulatory Sandbox for fintech product testing; a Resource Centre Portal; an Investor Forum; a Financial Calculator; and quarterly research outputs including the Capital Markets Soundness Report and Corporate Governance reports. The Authority's most notable AI-driven asset is MALENA (Machine Learning ESG Analyst), co-developed with IFC to automate ESG and corporate governance assessments of securities issuers under an ESG Code aligned with IFRS S1 and S2.

CMA is a non-commercial statutory government entity; its operating model is funded through Kenyan government budget allocation and nominal licensing/regulatory fees, with no commercial sales motion. Primary constituencies are capital market intermediaries and issuers of securities to the public; additional regulated segments include collective investment schemes, virtual asset service providers, digital investment platforms, and intermediaries facilitating mobile investment products. Distribution is via online portals and the Nairobi headquarters, supplemented by regulator-driven investor education across webinars, conferences, publications, and a mobile app ecosystem.

Name

Capital Markets Authority

Legal name

Capital Markets Authority

Website

https://cma.or.ke

Company type

Private

Founded year

1989

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Capital Markets Authority (CMA) is Kenya's statutory capital markets regulator, established in 1989 under the Capital Markets Act. It licenses and supervises market intermediaries, regulates public securities offerings, oversees virtual asset service providers, and operates digital platforms supporting market development.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Securities Regulation

NAICS

Executive, Legislative, and Other General Government Support (921)

SIC

Finance Services (6199)

akta.pro primary industry

Financial Services Regulators (Banking, Securities, Insurance) (BPAIAOAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

KYC/Client Due Diligence & Participant Onboarding Controls (FSAFAKAF), Research Compliance & Governance (FSACAGAK)

Keywords

• Capital markets regulation
• Securities licensing
• Investor protection
• Market supervision
• Financial regulation

Headquarters

HQ city

Nairobi

HQ country

Kenya

HQ region

Africa

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

The Capital Markets Authority (CMA) licenses, regulates, and supervises capital markets activity in Kenya, including investment banks, stockbrokers, fund managers, collective investment schemes, issuers of securities to the public, and virtual asset service providers. It also develops the capital markets through investor education, policy initiatives, the Regulatory Sandbox, the AI-powered MALENA ESG Analyst, and digital platforms accessible via the eCitizen portal.

Product overview

The Capital Markets Authority (CMA) is Kenya's statutory regulator for capital markets, operating under the Capital Markets Act Cap 485A since 1989. The Authority provides a portfolio of regulatory platforms and digital services rather than a single product. Its core offerings include licensing and approval services for capital market intermediaries (investment banks, stockbrokers, fund managers, investment advisors, authorized securities dealers, corporate trustees, and intermediary service platform providers), investor protection mechanisms, and market development initiatives. The Authority supports these regulatory functions through a suite of digital platforms: the CMA App, NSE App, and Dosikaa App for mobile access; the Financial Calculator for investment calculations; the Regulatory Sandbox for fintech innovation testing; the Online Services Portal for license applications and reporting; the Resource Centre Portal for compliance materials; the Capital Markets Information Toolkit for investor education; the Investor Forum for community engagement; and the quarterly Capital Markets Soundness Report for market intelligence. CMA also regulates commodity markets and online forex trading.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• CMA App Official mobile application of the Capital Markets Authority providing Kenyan investors with access to capital markets information and services.
• Dosikaa App Mobile application for accessing capital markets services, listed as a core product on the CMA website.
• Financial Calculator Online financial calculator hosted at fcalculator.cma.or.ke to help investors perform capital markets calculations.
• Regulatory Sandbox Regulatory sandbox program run by CMA that provides a controlled environment for firms to test new capital markets products and services.
• Online Services Portal CMA's online services portal hosted on the eCitizen platform, enabling regulated entities and the public to access CMA regulatory services.
• Resource Centre Portal Resource centre portal hosted at cmarcp.or.ke that provides access to capital markets resources, publications, and reference material.
• Capital Markets Information Toolkit Reference handbook of capital markets information published and made available by the Capital Markets Authority to inform market participants and the public.
• Investor Forum Investor forum listed on the CMA website as a platform for engaging the investing public on capital markets matters.

Quantifiable outcome

• 79% overall governance score achieved by issuers (up from 74%)
• +1 more outcomes

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered strategic, core, regional and minor.

• Afri Fund CapitalstrategicStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 March 2026CMA signed MoU with Afri Fund Capital (AFC) to promote uptake of capital market products for infrastructure projects including LAPSSET Corridor. Collaboration includes identifying capital market instruments for market deepening, green/ESG-labeled instruments, and collective investment vehicles. MOU facilitates early-stage product structuring considering investor protection, disclosures, and governance.
• International Finance Corporation (IFC)strategicStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with IFC in developing ESG Code for Issuers of Securities to the Public in Kenya, aligned with IFRS S1 and S2 standards. IFC partnership also includes development of MALENA AI tool for ESG analysis.
• Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNSE is a key market player under CMA's regulatory oversight. CMA and NSE collaborate on ESG Code development and various market development initiatives.
• Central Bank of KenyacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint regulatory oversight with CBK on Virtual Asset Service Providers under the VASP Act, 2025. Collaborative development of draft VASP regulations, 2026.
• National TreasurycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational Treasury collaborated with CBK and CMA to develop Virtual Asset Service Providers regulations under the VASP Act, 2025.
• IOSCO (International Organization of Securities Commissions)strategicStrategic or Co-development PartnerCMA is a member of IOSCO, the international body that brings together securities regulators to develop standards and cooperate on securities regulation.
• CMA UgandaregionalStrategic or Co-development PartnerSister regulatory body in Uganda. Okusevinga product in Uganda is licensed by CMA Uganda. Cross-border regulatory collaboration.
• CMA RwandaregionalStrategic or Co-development PartnerSister regulatory body in Rwanda. Regional regulatory cooperation within East Africa.
• Kenya Diaspora Alliance (KDA)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerCMA partnered with KDA for the 11th Annual Kenya Diaspora Homecoming Convention (KDHC-2024) to promote capital market products to diaspora investors who remitted USD 4.19 billion in 2023.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Financial Sector Conduct Authority (South Africa): South Africa's market conduct regulator overseeing securities, CIS, and financial services providers. A larger and more established peer operating a twin-mandate model (FSCA + Prudential Authority) that CMA Kenya may benchmark against as its mandate expands.
• Financial Conduct Authority (UK): UK conduct regulator for financial services and capital markets. A globally recognized model that CMA Kenya is likely aligned to via IOSCO membership, with comparable functions in licensing, supervision, and enforcement.
• Monetary Authority of Singapore: Integrated financial regulator combining monetary, banking, securities, insurance, and emerging fintech/VASP oversight. A benchmark for CMA's trajectory toward integrated oversight of capital markets and virtual assets.
• U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission: U.S. federal securities regulator and the global gold standard for capital markets oversight. A reference peer in disclosure regimes, enforcement approach, and investor protection frameworks that CMA Kenya aligns to through IOSCO.
• Central Bank of Kenya: Joint regulator with CMA on VASPs under the VASP Act, 2025. Closest institutional counterparty in Kenya's financial regulatory architecture and the most directly comparable peer given overlapping jurisdiction over virtual assets and payments.

Regional players

• Capital Markets Authority of Rwanda: Regional counterpart regulated under Rwandan capital markets legislation, collaborating with CMA Kenya on East African market integration. Directly comparable as a national capital markets regulator in a neighboring jurisdiction.
• Financial Regulatory Authority (Egypt): Egypt's integrated non-banking financial services regulator overseeing capital markets, insurance, and CIS. A comparable African peer combining securities and broader non-bank financial supervision under one authority.
• Capital Markets Authority of Uganda: Sister regulator in the East African Community with a near-identical mandate over securities licensing, CIS, and market development. Direct peer given shared statutory role, cross-border cooperation with CMA Kenya, and joint oversight of mobile investment products (e.g., Okusevinga).
• Capital Markets and Securities Authority (Tanzania): Tanzanian statutory capital markets regulator with a similar licensing and supervision mandate. Regional peer for benchmarking regulatory design and East African cross-border cooperation.

Direct peers

• Securities and Exchange Commission (Nigeria): Nigeria's apex capital markets regulator licensing exchanges, brokers, fund managers, and VASPs. Closely comparable in statutory role, scope, and product universe, and a direct competitor for African listings and intermediaries.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/kenyacma/videos
• Xx.com/cmakenya
• Facebookfacebook.com/cmakenya

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Capital Markets Authority