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🇰🇪 Sending to Kenya

KE · KEN

KES

FATF grey list   National format   SWIFT BIC required

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FATF Increased Monitoring

This jurisdiction is on the FATF list of jurisdictions under increased monitoring. FATF does not call for enhanced due diligence on that basis, but asks institutions to take the listing into account in their risk analysis.

Required information

  • Account number

    Variable, typically 10-16 digits/alphanumeric; not standardized across banks

  • SWIFT BIC

    Beneficiary bank BIC (8 or 11 characters).

  • CBK Bank Code + Branch Code (BIC for KEPSS/RTGS)

    2-digit bank code + 3-digit branch code domestically; 8/11-char SWIFT BIC for KEPSS/RTGS settlement

  • Purpose-of-payment code (strongly advised)

    ISO 20022 ExternalPurpose code for USD; the Kenya KEPSS PoP list applies to KES only

  • Beneficiary address

    Match the address template — partial addresses cause holds.

For your end users

Double-check the beneficiary's full name (no initials), account number, and bank SWIFT/BIC against what their bank has on file. International wires can take 1-5 business days and may be delayed by sanctions screening.

Last reviewed by GIB compliance on 2026-05-21. Reference material only.

  • Currency

    KES

  • Typical settlement

    1-2 business days typical; longer for cross-border with FX or compliance review.

  • SWIFT BIC

    Required

  • Local clearing

    KEPSS — Kenya Electronic Payment & Settlement System (Central Bank of Kenya)

Account format

How beneficiary account numbers are structured for Kenya. Failure to match this format is the single most common reason wires are rejected at the destination.

Field Value
Format tier National format
Length Variable, typically 10-16 digits/alphanumeric; not standardized across banks
Validation regex ^[0-9A-Z]{6,16}$
Example 1234567890 (KCB) | 0123456789012 (Equity)

Routing identifiers

Which routing codes the wire-creation API call must include for Kenya.

Field Value
SWIFT BIC Required
CBK Bank Code + Branch Code (BIC for KEPSS/RTGS) Required
Format 2-digit bank code + 3-digit branch code domestically; 8/11-char SWIFT BIC for KEPSS/RTGS settlement
Directory ↗ Source
Local clearing KEPSS — Kenya Electronic Payment & Settlement System (Central Bank of Kenya)

Address format

How Kenya expects the beneficiary address to appear on the wire. Free-form variations frequently trigger compliance holds.

  1. Recipient Full Name
  2. P.O. Box Number OR Street/Building
  3. 5-digit Postal Code
  4. Town/City
  5. KENYA
Field Value
Postal code Optional — validated against the format below when provided
Postal code regex ^[0-9]{5}$
Example John Mwangi, P.O. Box 30001, 00100 Nairobi, KENYA

Purpose of payment

Put a code from the ISO 20022 list in <Purp><Cd> (purpose_code). Requirement: Highly recommended GIB check: a missing or unexpected purpose is reported as a validation warning; the wire is not held.

Not yet confirmed

We have not yet confirmed this country's purpose-of-payment requirement against a central-bank or correspondent-bank source. Including a purpose is recommended. We update these guides as we confirm each country.

Field Value
Code format ISO 20022 ExternalPurpose code for USD; the Kenya KEPSS PoP list applies to KES only

Available codes:

Use the ISO 20022 ExternalPurpose code list.

Operational notes

Field Value
Currencies accepted KES
Typical settlement 1-2 business days typical; longer for cross-border with FX or compliance review.
Banking holidays ↗ Calendar

Known issues:

  • No nationally standardized account number length; each bank sets its own format (KCB 10 digits, Equity 13 digits, Ecobank 16, HF Bank includes alphanumerics).
  • Most retail beneficiaries use P.O. Box addresses rather than street addresses.
  • KEPSS (RTGS) settles in KES only; FX legs handled by commercial banks under CBK FX Business Regulations 2007.

Common rejection reasons

Documented patterns that cause this country's banks to return wires. Universal reasons (sanctions holds, missing BIC) aren't repeated here.

Beneficiary name mismatch (initials, abbreviations, punctuation, or transliteration differences from what the beneficiary bank has on file).
Account number format error (wrong length, wrong check digits, or non-standard characters).
Missing or invalid SWIFT/BIC code.
Insufficient remittance information (unclear economic reason for the payment).
Sanctions or compliance hold (OFAC / EU / UN / local screening).
FX-control documentation required by authorized dealer for transactions exceeding USD 10,000 equivalent (CBK Foreign Exchange Business Regulations).
P.O. Box-only addresses common; lack of physical street address can cause OFAC/AML enrichment failures at correspondent banks.

Validate before you send

Check identifiers before you submit. The IBAN check runs in your browser (format plus the ISO 13616 MOD-97 check digit). GIB's API checks the IBAN format for countries where an IBAN is required. The BIC lookup searches GIB's BIC directory and needs a dashboard login.

BIC lookup

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References

First-party sources — central banks, FX regulators, ISO registries. Always re-verify against these before pushing volume to a new corridor.

Disclaimer

These country guides aggregate information from central banks, regulators, and industry-standard references. Global Innovations Bank reviews them on a rolling cadence and notes the verification date on each page. Payment-corridor rules change between releases, so we cannot guarantee continued accuracy.

Always verify against the primary sources linked in the References section before going live in a new corridor. Re-check applicable sanctions lists (OFAC, EU, UK, UN consolidated, and any state-level requirements) at the time of payment, since designations shift between our refreshes.

For fintech partners on GIB's sponsor-bank rails, these guides do not replace your BSA/AML, KYC, sanctions-screening, or transaction-monitoring obligations under your program agreement with GIB.

Nothing in this material constitutes legal, tax, or regulatory advice, and wire-acceptance decisions remain at the discretion of GIB Compliance and the destination bank.

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