Advertising and Promoting Virtual Assets in Kenya: What Part XIII Actually Restricts

Marketing a virtual asset business in Kenya is now a regulated activity in its own right, not just a matter of ordinary advertising standards. Part XIII of the Virtual Asset Service Providers Regulations, 2026 sets specific, detailed restrictions on how virtual asset services, including initial coin offerings and non-fungible tokens, can be advertised or promoted. For marketing teams, this Part is the compliance checklist that sits between a campaign concept and a campaign that can actually run.

The prohibition, and who it actually catches

Regulation 123(1) prohibits a person from advertising or promoting a virtual asset service unless that person complies with the Regulations. Regulation 123(2) extends this to anyone acting on a licensee’s behalf: the licensee is liable and responsible for such persons as if it had undertaken the advertising itself. This matters for how marketing work gets outsourced. Engaging an external agency, an influencer, or a freelance content creator does not transfer compliance risk away from the licensee; a non-compliant advertisement produced by a third party is treated as the licensee’s own non-compliant advertisement.

Regulation 123(3) carves out narrow exceptions: government advertising, businesses that simply print commercial and promotional materials for licensees, and persons who only secure ad placement without responsibility for the content. A media buyer who does not touch the creative is exempt; the marketing team and agency that produce the creative are not.

What every advertisement has to get right

Regulation 124(1) sets the baseline standard: advertisements must be fair, clear, complete, concise, unambiguous, and unbiased, and must not be false, misleading, or deceptive. They must contain timely, relevant information, convey an equitable message about returns, benefits, and risks rather than emphasising upside alone, and use media appropriate to the target audience. Two provisions deserve particular attention from marketing teams used to more permissive advertising environments: regulation 124(1)(e) prohibits luring or inducing consumers into malicious virtual asset services or offerings, and regulation 124(1)(h) prohibits stating or implying that a virtual asset or service is suitable for a particular class of consumers unless it is actually designated as a product for that class. A campaign implying a product is right for, say, retail investors or first-time users cannot make that claim unless the product has actually been designated for that audience.

Regulation 124(1)(g) also requires plain language, capable of being clearly understood by the audience likely to see the advertisement. Regulation 124(2) adds a substantive obligation that goes beyond the advertisement itself: before selling any virtual asset or service, a licensee must ensure consumers have received sufficient information about benefits and risks to make an informed decision, which means the sales process downstream of the advertisement carries its own disclosure obligation.

Identifiability, targeting, and who an advertisement cannot reach

Regulation 124(1)(d) requires an advertisement to be clearly identifiable as an advertisement, with the media chosen suitable for that advertisement given due consideration to the target market or class of consumers it will reach. A promotional post disguised as ordinary content, or a campaign placed on a channel poorly matched to its intended audience, falls short of this on its own terms, separate from any issue with the advertisement’s actual claims. Regulation 124(1)(f) adds a further restriction aimed squarely at the sector’s reputational risk: an advertisement must not facilitate illicit actors or high-risk virtual asset service providers in the offering of virtual assets, including initial coin offerings or virtual asset services. This puts a due diligence obligation on marketing teams themselves, not just on compliance, when a campaign involves cross-promotion, affiliate arrangements, or partnerships with other virtual asset businesses.

What has to actually appear in the advertisement

Regulation 124(3) requires advertisements relating to a licensee’s services to include relevant information on the type of service offered, the terms and timeframes for deposits and withdrawals, associated fees, and a reference to where consumers can find the full terms and conditions. A short-form ad, a social media post, or a banner cannot simply drive traffic to a landing page without at least referencing where the complete terms live.

Regulation 125(1) separately requires licensees and promoters to avoid extensive use of technical or legal terminology that might confuse an audience unfamiliar with virtual asset concepts. Regulation 125(2) requires every advertisement to include details identifying the licensee or promoter responsible for it, which rules out anonymous or unattributed promotional content, a format that is common in crypto marketing generally but not compliant under this regime.

Enforcement

Contravening the Part XIII advertising requirements exposes the licensee to the administrative sanction specified under regulation 142, referenced both in regulation 123(4) for the general prohibition and regulation 124(4) for the content requirements. Because regulation 123(2) makes the licensee responsible for third-party marketing conduct, sanctions risk is not confined to campaigns the licensee’s own team produces directly.

Building compliant marketing from the start

The practical implication for a marketing team is that campaign review needs a compliance checkpoint before launch, not just a brand or legal review: confirm the advertisement’s risk and benefit framing is balanced, confirm any audience-suitability claim matches an actual product designation, confirm fee, deposit, and withdrawal terms are referenced, confirm the licensee is clearly identified, and confirm the same standard has been communicated to any agency or influencer working on the licensee’s behalf, since their output carries the licensee’s own liability.