Kenya And Rwanda Sign New Law That Allows Fintechs Licenses In One Country To Operate Freely Without A License In The Other
Kenya and Rwanda have signed a landmark agreement that could allow digital payment companies licensed in one country to operate freely in the other, without going through an entirely new licensing process.
The National Bank of Rwanda (NBR) and the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) signed the Kigali Declaration on Fintech License Passporting on March 11, on the sidelines of the Inclusive FinTech Forum 2026.
Under the Licence Passporting Framework, a payment company, for instance, a fintech or mobile money operator licensed in one country, can automatically operate in the other through mutual recognition of licences, sparing companies the hassle of registering twice.
The two central banks said the framework would promote mutual recognition of licensing regimes for payment service providers, enabling responsible cross-border expansion while preserving regulatory supervision and cooperation between the authorities.