President William Ruto has signed the Anti-Money Laundering and Combating of Terrorism Financing Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2025 into law.

The Bill, sponsored by National Assembly Majority Leader Kimani Ichung'wah, seeks to seal critical gaps that have enabled money laundering and illicit financial flows through property transactions and the use of shell companies.

The Bill amended 10 Acts of Parliament to address the technical compliance deficiencies identified by the Eastern and Southern Africa Anti-Money Laundering Group (ESAAMLG), the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) on anti-money laundering, combating terrorism financing and combating proliferation financing.

The Acts include the Proceeds of Crime and Anti-Money Laundering Act (Cap. 59A), Prevention of Terrorism Act (Cap. 59B), Betting, Lotteries and Gaming Act (Cap. 131), Retirement Benefits Act (Cap. 197), Mining Act (Cap. 306), Sacco Societies Act (Cap. 490B) and the Accountants Act (Cap. 531).

Others include the Estate Agents Act (Cap. 533), the Certified Public Secretaries of Kenya Act (Cap. 534) and the Public Benefits Organizations Act (No. 18 of 2013).

Kenya was grey-listed in 2024 by the FATF, the global money laundering and terrorist financing watchdog, due to the lack of a clear strategy on the prosecution of money laundering offences.

FATG tasked Kenya with  ensuring that the financial intelligence information gathered is used more effectively and also inspecting the work of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and not-for-profit organizations to ensure that they do legitimate work and are not used as conduits to transfer proceeds of crime.

President Ruto also signed the Insurance Professionals Bill (National Assembly Bills No. 13 of 2024) into law, which seeks to streamline the regulation of professionals in the insurance sector.

Sponsored by Molo MP Kuria Kimani, chairperson of the National Assembly Finance Committee, it provides regulations on enhancing the standards of service, promote professionalism, and address concerns regarding professional misconduct in the insurance industry.

The Bill will mandate the Insurance Institute of Kenya (IIK), the umbrella body for insurance professionals in Kenya, as the overall professional organ for insurance professionals and shall regulate professional conduct and maintain the standards of services rendered by insurance professionals. 

The Bill also establishes the Insurance Professionals Examinations Board, which shall carry out processes associated with examining the insurance professionals. 

A Disciplinary Committee shall also be established to hear all professional misconduct cases amongst insurance professionals and present a report with necessary recommendations to the Registration Committee of the IIK for appropriate action.