DeFi Technologies, its subsidiary, Valour, an issuer of exchange-traded products, and SovFi have entered into a strategic partnership with the Nairobi Securities Exchange to design and establish the Kenya Digital Exchange.
The proposed Kenya Digital Exchange will be a fully regulated platform dedicated to tokenizing real-world assets, including equities, debt, funds, and commodities, while enabling primary issuance, trading, and liquidity provisioning. The Kenya Digital Exchange will leverage blockchain technology, including integration with Hedera, to facilitate secure, transparent, and efficient transactions.
“This partnership represents a transformative step in expanding digital asset infrastructure across Africa,” said Olivier Roussy Newton of DeFi Technologies. “By collaborating with NSE, we will empower investors with new asset classes, driving economic growth, and positioning Kenya as a leading financial hub in Africa.”
”This partnership marks a bold and strategic leap toward the future of African capital markets,” said Frank Mwiti, CEO of the Nairobi Securities Exchange. “By collaborating with DeFi Technologies and SovFi to design and launch the Kenya Digital Exchange, we are laying the foundation for a dynamic digital marketplace that will unlock new investment opportunities, deepen market access, and position Kenya as a trailblazer in the tokenization and trading of real-world assets across the continent.”
SovFi will assist companies and entities in tokenizing their shares and other real-world assets, promoting blockchain adoption in the African financial markets.
The initial phases will focus on investor onboarding, regulatory compliance, and primary market token issuance, with subsequent stages introducing secondary market trading, advanced AI trading strategies, market making, and interoperability with global digital exchanges.
The Kenya Digital Exchange will be deployed in three phases between Q4 2025 and the end of Q2 2026. The revenue model will include trading fees, withdrawal and deposit fees, listing fees, margin trading and lending, staking services, initial exchange offerings and token launches, custody services, tokenization services, fiat conversion fees, market-making, yield services, and liquidity provision by DeFi Technologies’ wholly-owned subsidiary, Stillman Digital.
The exchange will operate under a shared ownership structure, with DeFi Technologies leading technology provision, liquidity management, and operational oversight, while the Nairobi Securities Exchange will handle market operations, regulatory approvals, and facilitate market access.
Digital asset adoption in Kenya
In 2022, Kenya’s cryptocurrency transactions were valued at approximately $18.6 billion (KES 2.4 trillion), surpassing the transaction volumes of some commercial banks in the country. This substantial volume highlights the growing significance of digital assets in Kenya’s financial landscape.
With more than six million crypto users—roughly 10% of the population—and a tech-savvy, mobile-first demographic, Kenya has quickly become a hotspot for blockchain innovation. The market’s expansion is driven by an 85% smartphone penetration rate, a thriving mobile money ecosystem, and increasing entrepreneurial activity.
Kenya ranks among the top five African nations for cryptocurrency ownership and is globally recognized for its grassroots adoption, ranking 21st globally. The country’s fintech ecosystem includes more than 40 active crypto and Web3 startups. Kenya’s tech sector saw $638 million in venture funding in 2024.