CMA graduates Sycamore Capital Limited from the Regulatory Sandbox

Nairobi, 12 January, 2024…The Capital Markets Authority has announced the successful exit of Sycamore Capital Limited from the Regulatory Sandbox and approval to operate as a mobile-based Collective Investment Scheme intermediary service platform provider through the Cashlet mobile application. The approval granted pursuant to Section 11 (3) (f) of the Capital Markets Act and Paragraph 29 (b) of the Regulatory Sandbox Policy Guidance Note making it the 11th firm to successfully exit the live testing environment.

‘The regulatory sandbox remains an important tool for the Authority in developing evidence-based policy and regulation by facilitating innovation. However, more strategically, we see it as a driver for growth in the investor base, democratizing wealth and enhancing liquidity in the capital markets’, CMA Chief Executive Officer Wyckliffe Shamiah said.

Sycamore Capital was admitted to the live-testing environment in July 2021. In partnership with licensed fund manager ICEA Lion Asset Managers, it sought to bring together retail investors through Cashlet app, and subsequently direct their investments into registered collective investment schemes. The objective of the innovation is to spur an investment culture among the youth by providing convenient and low-cost access to unit trust schemes and eliminating traditional paperwork, which are usually barriers for millennials.

An intermediary service platform means any electronic application or otherwise which facilitates the marketing and distribution of approved collective investment schemes other than a platform that is deployed by an existing licensed institution for the purpose of improving efficiency. On the other hand, an intermediary service platform provider means any person who operates an intermediary services platform and acts as an intermediary between the fund manager and the investors.

ENDS

BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON THE CAPITAL MARKETS AUTHORITY

The Capital Markets Authority (CMA) was set up in 1989 as a statutory agency under the Capital Markets Act Cap 485A. It is charged with the prime responsibility of both regulating and developing an orderly, fair, and efficient capital markets in Kenya with the view to promoting market integrity and investor confidence. CMA also regulates the commodity markets and online forex trading. The regulatory functions of the Authority as provided by the Act and the regulations include; Licensing and supervising all the capital market intermediaries; Ensuring compliance with the legal and regulatory framework by all market participants; Regulating public offers of securities, such as equities and bonds & the issuance of other capital market products such as collective investment schemes; Promoting market development through research on new products and services; Reviewing the legal framework to respond to market dynamics; Promoting investor education and public awareness; and Protecting investors’ interest. For more information, please contact: Antony Mwangi, Manager Corporate Affairs & International Relations on amwangi@cma.or.ke