Kenya and Rwanda have introduced a new cross-border payments initiative aimed at simplifying how financial technology firms operate between the two markets. Through a Memorandum of Understanding between the Central Bank of Kenya and the National Bank of Rwanda, the regulators have established a licence passporting framework that will allow licensed Payment Service Providers to access both jurisdictions more efficiently.
The framework creates a structured mechanism through which a payment institution authorised in one country may operate in the other without repeating a full licensing process. Although firms remain subject to the applicable regulatory requirements of each jurisdiction, the arrangement introduces a form of regulatory recognition that reduces duplication and lowers the administrative burden associated with entering a neighbouring market.
