Regulator Seeks Blockchain Surveillance System for Crypto Market Oversight
Kenya’s securities regulator is looking to acquire a blockchain surveillance system to oversee the nation’s rapidly expanding cryptocurrency market, as it prepares to license and supervise virtual asset firms under new legislation.
The Capital Markets Authority (CMA) is seeking an advanced blockchain analytics platform to monitor digital asset transactions, investigate suspicious activities, and ensure compliance, according to tender documents obtained by Capital FM Africa. The proposed system would track Bitcoin, Ethereum, and at least 20 other blockchains, offering both real-time and retrospective analysis.
The platform is expected to generate automated alerts for high-risk wallets, significant transfers, coin mixers, darknet-linked addresses, and sanctioned entities. It will also screen transactions against sanctions lists from the United Nations and the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control. Furthermore, the system would map relationships between wallets, reconstruct transaction timelines, trace funds across different blockchains, and assign risk scores related to money laundering, ransomware, fraud, and terrorism financing. The regulator aims to identify the exchanges most frequented by Kenyans and detect unlicensed offshore platforms operating within the local market.
The capabilities described are consistent with tools offered by blockchain intelligence firms such as Chainalysis, TRM Labs, and Elliptic, which provide similar software to governments and regulatory bodies globally.
This acquisition will support Kenya’s Virtual Assets Service Providers Act, signed into law by President William Ruto in October and effective since November. This legislation establishes the country’s first comprehensive framework for cryptocurrencies. The oversight responsibilities are divided between the Central Bank of Kenya, which will regulate payments, stablecoins, and custodial wallets, and the CMA, which will oversee exchanges, brokers, investment advisers, and tokenization platforms. This move is part of a broader effort to align with anti-money-laundering standards set by the Financial Action Task Force.
No firms have been licensed yet. The National Treasury released draft regulations in March, and existing operators have until November 2026 to comply.
Kenya is recognized as one of Africa’s largest cryptocurrency markets. Between July 2024 and June 2025, residents received approximately $19 billion in crypto, placing the country fourth on the continent, according to Chainalysis. It is estimated that over six million Kenyans use digital assets, with a significant portion of this activity occurring through informal, peer-to-peer channels.
Kenya is not alone in its pursuit of such technological tools. In the United States, Immigration and Customs Enforcement last year moved to purchase forensic software from both TRM Labs and Chainalysis, companies that already hold contracts with the FBI, the DEA, and the IRS. Similarly, Britain’s tax authority, HMRC, has engaged TRM Labs to trace suspect transactions.
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