Get a CMA licence (stockbroker, fund manager, investment adviser and more)
Capital Markets Authority · sources read 2 Oct 2026
Download CMA's checklist for your licence type, then apply and pay the KSh 10,000 application fee on CMA eCitizen and deliver the physical application to CMA. Once approved, you pay the licence fee (KSh 100,000 for a stockbroker, fund manager or investment adviser).
- Fee
- KSh 10,000Application fee (fund manager; also stockbroker, dealer, investment adviser)KSh 100,000Licence fee, stockbrokerKSh 100,000Licence fee, fund managerKSh 100,000Licence fee, investment adviserKSh 20,000Application fee, investment bankKSh 250,000Licence fee, investment bank
- Where
- Online on CMA eCitizen (cma.ecitizen.go.ke), plus a physical copy delivered to CMA, Embankment Plaza, 3rd Floor, Longonot Road, Upper Hill, Nairobi
What you need
- Completed application Form 1
- Certified copy of the certificate of incorporation
- CR12 and beneficial ownership document from BRS
- Business plan with 3-year financial projections
- Certified police clearance certificates for directors and key staff
Steps
- Download the licensing checklist for your licence type from cma.or.ke/licensing and prepare every document on it.
- Apply and pay the application fee on CMA eCitizen (cma.ecitizen.go.ke).
- Deliver the physical application to CMA's offices at Embankment Plaza, Upper Hill, Nairobi.
- Once CMA is satisfied you meet all the requirements, pay the licence fee and CMA grants the licence.
Watch out
- An approval in principle lasts 6 months. Meet all the conditions in that time, or you must apply afresh.
- With approval in principle you can set up offices, systems and staff, but you can't start operating until the licence is issued.
- Licensees also pay an annual regulatory fee every year.
Who can apply
- Companies that want to operate as a capital markets intermediary or approved institution in Kenya
- Fund managers need paid-up share capital of at least KSh 20 million
Official sources (6)
- Licensing Checklists cma.or.ke · read 2 Oct 2026
- Fund Manager Checklist cma.or.ke · read 2 Oct 2026
- Capital Markets (Licensing Requirements) (General) Regulations, 2025 (L.N. 197, Kenya Gazette Supplement No. 210, 11 Dec 2025) cma.or.ke · read 2 Oct 2026
- Investor Compensation Fund (page footer, CMA contact details) cma.or.ke · read 2 Oct 2026
- Citizens' Service Delivery Charter cma.or.ke · read 2 Oct 2026
- CMA services on eCitizen cma.ecitizen.go.ke · read 2 Oct 2026