As Kenya’s digital asset landscape matures, Yellow Card shares its perspectives on the unfolding regulatory developments. In an exclusive interview with Sharon Tum, the Regional Operations Manager for Yellow Card in East Africa, we talk about the company’s operations, challenges faced in the crypto market, and its take on the Blockchain Association of Kenya’s (BAK) Virtual Assets Service Provider (VASP) draft Bill.
Yellow Card’s Background
Yellow Card, the largest and first licensed Stablecoin on/off ramp in Africa, has risen to become one of the leading exchanges in Africa. In the interview, Sharon Tum shares Yellow Card’s mission – to make digital assets like Bitcoin, Litecoin, Ethereum, and other stable coins accessible to everyone in Africa. As the Regional operations manager, she oversees the company’s operations in Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, and soon South Sudan.
Regulation is Necessary for Industry Growth
Sharon Tum shares Yellow Card’s thoughts on Kenya’s regulatory landscape, emphasizing the importance of regulations in addressing challenges the industry faces.Yellow Card participated in the discussions surrounding the VASP draft Bill as a stakeholder member of the Blockchain Association of Kenya. Lack of regulation creates a vacuum that can lead to fraudulent activities. With Kenya ranking third in crypto adoption after Nigeria and South Africa, there is a need for consumer protection.
Yellow Card also sees the need of having a framework to classify digital assets in order to improve collection of tax. The company is working with regulatory authorities to enhance compliance.
As part of its commitment to the industry, Yellow Card also provides free education through its Yellow Card Academy. The platform has different courses covering aspects of digital assets to help users differentiate between real opportunities and scams. This is crucial particularly for the youth who form a big portion of Yellow Card’s users.
Regulatory Vision
The Blockchain Association of Kenya has expressed its vision of making Kenya a digital asset hub. The VASP draft Bill is a result of this. It is also a response to the mandate given by legislators to develop a regulatory framework for crypto assets in Kenya.
The bill proposes a licensing framework, consumer protection measures, Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing strategies and the creation of a regulatory sandbox.
The BAK is inviting feedback on the Draft VASP bill before it is presented in parliament.
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