News and Analysis
July 24, 2026
Welcome to the Money News Roundup. In today's edition, we cover a landmark court ruling that sets a precedent for loan recovery cases involving unlicensed digital lenders. We also look at the government's revised funding plan for the JKIA expansion project after it cut the project's cost and adopted a new financing model.
A Nairobi Small Claims Court has struck out two debt-recovery suits filed by digital lenders after finding they were not licensed by the CBK, setting a precedent for loan-recovery cases.
As reported by Business Daily, the court ruled that Tri-State Capital Limited and Mombo iCapital Limited lacked the legal authority to enforce loan agreements because they were not licensed to conduct lending business. The firms had sought to recover Ksh500,000 and Ksh162,297, respectively, from borrowers.
Resident Magistrate Gladys Kiama said unlicensed lenders cannot rely on the courts to enforce rights arising from unlawful lending activities, adding that licensing protects consumers from unregulated lending practices.
The ruling highlights the importance of the 2021 law requiring digital lenders to obtain CBK licences. Since April 2022, the regulator has licensed 252 digital credit providers after receiving more than 800 applications.
National Assembly Defence Committee Chairperson Nelson Koech said the UK relocated the 2026 Exercise Haraka Storm after Parliament declined to ratify a new defence agreement over concerns about legal jurisdiction, immunity for British soldiers, accountability, and unresolved issues surrounding the 2012 murder of Agnes Wanjiru.
As reported by Citizen Digital, he said Parliament's 2025 report recommended ratification only if British troops became subject to Kenyan courts for serious offences and stronger protections were put in place for host communities.
The remarks follow allegations of bribery that emerged after the Training was moved to Tanzania.
The government has revised the cost of the JKIA expansion project from Ksh155 billion to Ksh116 billion.
As reported by the Business Daily, under the revised plan, the government will borrow Ksh81 billion to finance the upgrade, dropping an earlier proposal to fund the project through a bond fully.
The loan will account for 70% of the revised project cost, while the remaining Ksh35 billion will be raised through a securitised bond backed by the Air Passenger Service Levy. Additional funding will also come from the National Infrastructure Fund.
The government has appointed the Trade and Development Bank and the Africa Finance Corporation to arrange the financing. The expansion will increase JKIA's annual passenger handling capacity from 7.5 million to 22 million through the construction of a new passenger terminal and the rehabilitation of existing airport facilities.
Plans to build a second runway have been deferred until future traffic growth justifies the investment.
Treasury has reduced the minimum capital requirements for cryptocurrency firms by up to 40%, lowering the threshold for stablecoin issuers from Ksh500 million to Ksh300 million after industry players warned the earlier proposal would discourage investment.
As reported by the Business Daily, new regulations issued by Treasury Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi also cut the minimum liquid capital requirement for stablecoin issuers from Ksh100 million to Ksh60 million, while retaining the annual licence fee at Ksh2 million.
The revised rules set paid-up capital at Ksh150 million for virtual asset wallet providers, Ksh20 million for initial coin offering (ICO) providers, and Ksh10 million for tokenisation businesses. Investment advisers will no longer require paid-up or liquid capital.
Meanwhile, as reported by Nation, borrowers could soon use cryptocurrencies, monetised social media income, patents, livestock and other movable assets as collateral for loans if Parliament approves proposed amendments to the Microfinance Act. The changes seek to expand the range of assets recognised by the Central Bank of Kenya for microfinance lending.
East African Community (EAC) central bank governors have reaffirmed their commitment to introducing a single regional currency by 2031, saying progress towards the East African Monetary Union (EAMU) remains on track despite implementation challenges.
As reported by Kenyans.co.ke, the governors said member states have made significant progress in harmonising monetary policy frameworks, strengthening policy coordination, and modernising payment systems to support regional integration.
However, they acknowledged that no EAC partner state has yet met all four macroeconomic convergence criteria required for the monetary union. They cited infrastructure financing needs and global economic uncertainty as key challenges.
As reported by Capital Business, the High Court has appointed an official liquidator to oversee the winding up of property developer Banda Homes Limited, marking a key step in the company's insolvency proceedings.
According to a Kenya Gazette notice, insolvency practitioner Waithaka Ngaruiya was appointed liquidator effective July 2, 2026, taking control of the firm's affairs, assets and business under the Insolvency Act.
Creditors and other claimants have been given 60 days to submit proof of debt forms and supporting documents for consideration during the liquidation process.
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