Valour to launch digital asset ETPs in Kenya

Crypto fund issuer Valour has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) and financial instrument issuance platform SovFi on issuing and trading digital asset exchange-traded products (ETPs) on the NSE in Kenya. 

Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), Solana (SOL) and Hedera (HBAR) ETPs from Valour and affiliated companies may be the first digital asset offerings on the NSE. The ETPs will be “passported” to the NSE, according to an announcement.

Valour taking digital asset derivatives to new markets

In the European Economic Area, “passporting” allows registration in one member state to be recognized throughout the area. Olivier Roussy Newton, CEO of Valour’s parent company DeFi Technologies, said:

“By leveraging our expertise in issuing innovative ETPs and facilitating the passporting of our financial instruments to the NSE, we aim to provide investors with secure and regulated exposure to the dynamic world of digital assets.”

DeFi Technologies is a Canada-based company traded on CBOE Canada. In June, it launched a validator node on the Core Chain after Core and Valour partnered to create the Valour Bitcoin Staking ETP on the Nordic Growth Market exchange.

Valour issues 33 ETPs on European exchanges. It launched the first Near Protocol (NEAR) ETP on the Swedish Spotlight Stock Market in July.

Crypto gradually emerging in Kenya

Kenya began the process of regulating digital assets in November 2022. The drafting of standalone legislation began a year later, with the participation of the Blockchain Association of Kenya. As of April, a multiagency government working group was developing a framework for monitoring and regulating cryptocurrencies and digital assets.

Interest in Web3 is high in Kenya. In May 2023, the Kenyan government partnered with Abu Dhabi-based blockchain platform Venom Foundation to launch a blockchain and Web3 hub in Africa.

Kenya resisted the introduction of Worldcoin, suspending the Sam Altman-backed project in August 2023, just days after its official launch. The Kenyan National Police Service finally let Worldcoin back into the country in June.