- SASRA has issued a fresh warning over unlicensed entities targeting Kenyans with promises of high returns.
- Employers and service providers are being urged to stop enabling fraudulent outfits posing as Saccos.
- The regulator has maintained restrictions on crypto investments as new rules for virtual assets take shape.
Kenyans have been told to avoid unlicensed outfits posing as Saccos, while the regulator closes the door on another emerging risk by barring regulated Saccos from investing member funds in cryptocurrency.
The Sacco Societies Regulatory Authority (SASRA) sounds the alarm in its Sacco Supervision Annual Report, 2025. It says fraudulent entities keep presenting themselves as Sacco societies, even after repeated public warnings. Most operate online and lure savers with promises of high returns. Once enough money has come in, they disappear. Because the transactions are digital, tracing and recovering the funds becomes extremely difficult.
To help the public spot the genuine institutions, SASRA has published official lists of licensed Saccos in Kenya Gazette Notice No. 1146 of January 30, 2026. The lists are on the Authority’s website, www.sasra.go.ke, and on its social media pages. Only 179 deposit taking Saccos (DT-Saccos) and 178 non withdrawable deposit taking Saccos (NWDT-Saccos) appear on them. SASRA urges Kenyans to deal only with entities named there.
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The regulator is also looking beyond savers to the firms that unknowingly keep these schemes alive. It wants public and private sector companies to stop supporting unlicensed outfits that pose as Saccos. That includes processing payroll deductions and remittances on their behalf, or giving them digital payment channels to operate through.
A newer threat comes from virtual assets. Parliament has passed the Virtual Asset Service Providers Act, 2025, which places crypto exchanges and related businesses under a formal licensing regime. This covers platforms dealing in Bitcoin, stablecoins and non-fungible tokens. The Central Bank of Kenya and the Capital Markets Authority will supervise the sector jointly. Under the law, virtual asset firms must obtain licences, verify customer identities, report suspicious transactions and work with the Financial Reporting Centre.
The National Treasury is still drafting the regulations that will bring the Act into full effect. Even so, SASRA has moved quickly to protect Sacco members from any fallout. Current rules already prohibit Saccos from investing member funds in virtual assets of any kind, and the regulator says that ban stays until the legal framework changes. For now, any Sacco tempted by crypto has been told clearly to keep away.
By Benedict Aoya
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