Tether and the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) announced a strategic partnership aimed at advancing the tokenized asset sector and integrating distributed ledger technology (DLT) into Kenya’s capital market infrastructure.
Tether signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Nairobi Securities Exchange. Under the agreement, the parties will explore opportunities for asset tokenization, accelerate securities settlement through blockchain infrastructure, improve access to investment opportunities, and educate market participants on digital financial instruments.
Founded in 1954, the Nairobi Securities Exchange is one of Africa’s largest stock exchanges. It has a market capitalization of approximately $26.4 billion. The exchange offers trading in equities, debt securities, and derivatives. It is also a member of the Futures Industry Association and a partner of the United Nations backed Sustainable Stock Exchanges (SSE) initiative.
Under the memorandum, Tether and the NSE will focus on several key areas, including:
- launching educational programs on digital assets for brokers and retail investors in Kenya;
- developing blockchain infrastructure for securities tokenization and instant settlement;
- enabling fractional ownership of securities through the Hadron platform;
- establishing secure Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti Money Laundering (AML) procedures that comply with Kenyan regulations;
- exploring opportunities to tokenize real world assets (RWAs) and issue tokenized financial instruments;
- assessing the potential use of USDT as a digital settlement layer where permitted by law.
One of the project’s objectives is to modernize the exchange’s existing settlement system. Tether expects that introducing instant, atomic settlement mechanisms will eliminate the current three tier settlement process while improving the speed and efficiency of transactions.
Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino said digital assets are gradually expanding beyond the cryptocurrency market and finding broader applications in cross border institutional finance. He said the partnership with the NSE is intended to improve market infrastructure, increase process transparency, and strengthen data protection.
Nairobi Securities Exchange CEO Frank Mwiti said the agreement aligns with the NSE’s 2025 to 2029 strategic plan, which calls for broader adoption of modern technologies, greater investor participation, and stronger global competitiveness. He said the partnership with Tether will help explore innovative solutions to modernize capital market infrastructure while maintaining high regulatory standards and market integrity.
Kenya ranks among the fastest growing cryptocurrency markets in Sub Saharan Africa. One factor behind that growth was the approval of the Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASP) Bill in October 2025, which established a legal framework for regulating the country’s cryptocurrency market.
