Ian Kahangara, Chief Investment Officer of Faida Unit Trust Funds, has outlined why investment schemes in Kenya have for a long time refrained from offering crypto investment opportunities, citing directives from the Capital Markets Authority, the country's capital markets regulator.

Faida Unit Trust Funds is an umbrella vehicle with four regulated collective investment schemes:

• Oak Money Market Fund
• Oak Fixed Income Fund
• Oak Multi-Asset Special Fund KES
• Oak Multi-Asset Special Fund USD

The Oak Fund, which is managed by Faida Investment Bank, remains a smaller player than the top 10 schemes overall. Faida Unit Trust Funds reported approximately KES 19.42 billion in assets in June 2026, placing it around 15th among schemes in Kenya.

When asked why the fund is not investing in cryptocurrencies on behalf of its more than 9,500 clients, Kahangara, whose role involves deciding where funds are deployed to generate returns for investors, said:

"We are at the tail end of regulations by the Capital Markets Authority of Kenya in terms of adopting virtual assets. Remember, we are a regulated entity. You cannot have a regulated entity trading in unregulated products. That is black and white in terms of the directives we have been given by the Capital Markets Authority."

His comments point to a transitional phase in Kenya's regulatory approach, with the Capital Markets Authority's rules on the adoption of virtual assets described as being at the tail end of the process.

The distinction matters in practical terms for how pooled savings in Kenya can be deployed. Because collective investment schemes operate under CMA approval, the products they offer must sit inside the regulator's perimeter — and until the virtual asset rules are completed, cryptocurrencies remain outside it. That dynamic is part of a broader pattern in which regulators work to bring digital assets under formal oversight before licensed institutions can access them, leaving firms like Faida to manage the mandates they already hold while the framework is completed.

According to Kahangara, while the digital asset space is exciting, the fund has to look at other aspects, including consistency and volatility, given that it manages money clients rely on. That emphasis on stability is central to pooled products such as money market funds, where preserving capital and delivering steady returns are the core expectation.

"When people leave us with their money – hard-earned money, their livelihoods, their pensions – they can sleep easily and wake up knowing that we will still be there and advocating for their money," he said.

About the Oak Fund

The Oak Fund is a Kenyan investment fund managed by Faida Investment Bank Limited. It gives investors access to local and international financial markets, with the aim of generating returns through a diversified portfolio. It is approved by Kenya's Capital Markets Authority (CMA).

The Oak Fund operates as an umbrella brand for a range of different investment products, including a money market fund, a fixed-income fund, and a higher-risk multi-asset special fund. The risks, minimum investment, and potential returns depend on which product an investor chooses.

Kahangara's remarks underscore the position of Kenya's regulated collective investment schemes as the country's virtual asset framework takes shape. For Faida, entrusted with the savings of more than 9,500 clients, the position is straightforward: until the relevant regulations are finalized, Kahangara said, the fund cannot trade products that fall outside the Capital Markets Authority's regulatory perimeter. With the CMA's virtual asset rules described as being at the tail end, the finalization of those regulations is the milestone to watch next — the point at which regulated schemes such as Faida's would gain clarity on whether digital assets can enter their mandates.