NAIROBI, Kenya – The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) is preparing to introduce new compensation rules for e-money and digital wallet users, in a move aimed at tightening consumer protection against the growing threat of mobile money fraud.
The rules, which are part of the Kenya National Financial Inclusion Strategy 2025–2028, are expected to be in place by the end of 2026.
CBK said the framework will establish clear recourse mechanisms for consumers, particularly those who fall victim to fraud or service failures in the fast-expanding digital financial services sector.
“The framework highlights capacity building among market players, deployment of digital complaint management systems, and enhanced transparency in pricing,” CBK noted, adding that key goals include reducing unresolved consumer complaints and raising awareness of financial rights.
CBK is working with other financial sector regulators and the Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) to roll out the measures.
The reforms are partly informed by a 2021 Digital Credit Market Inquiry by CAK and research firm Innovations for Poverty Action, which exposed the scale of fraud in mobile financial services.
The study revealed that 82 per cent of respondents had been targeted by fraudsters through unsolicited calls or messages, often impersonating financial service providers.
The most common tricks included requests to send money to reverse a fake erroneous transfer (77 per cent), demands for PINs or passwords (21 per cent), and requests for personal or account details (19 and 13 per cent respectively).
Findings from the 2021 inquiry were reinforced by the 2024 FinAccess Report, which showed that nearly 10 per cent of mobile money users had lost funds to fraud.
Internal fraud was also found to be widespread in Saccos and pension schemes, affecting over 75 per cent and 66 per cent of respondents respectively.
The CBK says the compensation framework is designed to restore public trust in digital finance, which has become central to Kenya’s economy but remains vulnerable to fraud and weak complaint resolution systems.
