Press Release

 CMA approves grant of a Non-Dealing Online Foreign Exchange Broker License to Exinity Capital East Africa Ltd

Nairobi, 11 November 2020……The Capital Markets Authority (CMA) has approved the grant of a license to Exinity Capital East Africa Limited to operate as a Non - Dealing Online Foreign Exchange Broker in line with the Capital Markets Act and the Capital Markets (Online Foreign Exchange Trading) Regulations, 2017.

This the fourth Non-Dealing Online Foreign Exchange Broker to be licensed by CMA. The other three are; EGM Securities Ltd (trading as FXPesa), SCFM Ltd (trading as Scope Markets), and Pepperstone Markets Kenya Limited.

The CMA Acting Chief Executive, Mr. Wyckliffe Shamiah observed; ‘’This is an important milestone in the online foreign exchange market as it gives Kenyans a choice of four non-dealing online foreign exchange brokers licensed by CMA. In line with the Authority’s investor protection mandate, we urge Kenyans to only trade through licensed entities to avoid the risks associated with firms that are not licensed. We are closely collaborating with licensees to identify strategies that can help us protect unsuspecting Kenyans from unlicensed entities where they are not protected by the regulator’’.

The non-dealing online foreign exchange broker license means the entity is licensed by the Authority to act as a link between the online foreign exchange market and a client in return for a commission or mark-up in spreads and does not engage in market-making activities (buying and selling of foreign currencies). Non- dealing Online Forex brokers do not offer client advice or trade on behalf of their clients. Clients deposit their investment amount with an account to be offered by the broker. The trader (client) is responsible for executing trades – buying and selling of any products on the platform and the requisite risk assessments are undertaken to determine suitability of clients to participate in online forex trading.

ENDS

BACKROUND INFORMATION ON THE CAPITAL MARKETS AUTHORITY

The Capital Markets Authority (CMA) was set up in 1989 as a statutory agency under the Capital Markets Act Cap 485A. It is charged with the prime responsibility of both regulating and developing an orderly, fair and efficient capital markets in Kenya with the view to promoting market integrity and investor confidence. The regulatory functions of the Authority as provided by the Act and the regulations include; Licensing and supervising all the capital market intermediaries; Ensuring compliance with the legal and regulatory framework by all market participants; Regulating public offers of securities, such as equities and bonds & the issuance of other capital market products such as collective investment schemes; Promoting market development through research on new products and services; Reviewing the legal framework to respond to market dynamics; Promoting investor education and public awareness; and Protecting investors’ interest. For more information, please contact: Antony Mwangi, Head of Corporate Communications on This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.