Regulatory Compliance

Tafsiri kamili ya Kiswahili ya maandishi haya ya kisheria bado inaandaliwa na inasubiri ukaguzi wa kitaalamu. Toleo la Kiingereza hapa chini ndilo linalotumika kisheria kwa sasa.

Last Updated: September 8, 2026

This page describes SecureEscrow Kenya's actual security practices and current registration status, and is updated as our registration and compliance work progresses.

1. Business Registration

SecureEscrow Kenya is operated by Clearhold Limited, a private limited company incorporated under Kenya's Companies Act, 2015.

Registered Business Name: Clearhold Limited (trading as SecureEscrow Kenya)
Company Registration Number: PVT-QQ1Z7D2K
Date of Incorporation: 7 September 2026
KRA PIN: [Pending registration]
Registered Office: [Pending registration]

2. Anti-Money Laundering & Fair Use

SecureEscrow Kenya takes reasonable, proportionate steps to prevent misuse of the platform, including monitoring for unusual transaction patterns and reserving the right to request additional information or decline a transaction where something looks wrong. Clearhold Limited is a registered Kenyan company, but is not currently a licensed financial institution and does not claim to operate a formal statutory AML program - if you need to report suspected fraud or misuse, contact us directly using the details in Section 9.

3. Data Protection

3.1 Data Protection Act, 2019

We handle personal data (phone numbers, transaction details) in line with the principles of Kenya's Data Protection Act, 2019, described below. Formal registration with the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner (ODPC) is in progress - this section will be updated with our registration number once complete.

3.2 Data Protection Principles We Follow

Lawfulness, fairness, and transparency in data processing
Purpose limitation — data collected only for specified purposes
Data minimization — collecting only what is necessary
Accuracy of personal data
Storage limitation — data retained only as necessary
Integrity and confidentiality of data, described in detail in Section 4

4. How We Actually Protect Your Money and Data

Rather than describe compliance frameworks we haven't yet obtained, here's what SecureEscrow Kenya technically does to protect every transaction:

Every transaction is tracked by a unique, randomly generated identifier - not a guessable sequence
Access to a transaction's details and actions requires a secret one-time link (magic link) sent directly to the buyer's or seller's phone - not a password you have to remember or that could be guessed
These access tokens are stored as one-way cryptographic hashes in our database - even if our database were ever compromised, the tokens themselves could not be recovered or reused
Phone numbers and payment details are masked in any view that hasn't been verified with a valid access token
All traffic between your browser and our servers is encrypted (HTTPS)
Automated rate-limiting is in place across the platform to slow down abuse attempts
Funds paid into escrow via M-PESA are held against your specific transaction until you confirm delivery - see Section 8 for how this works technically

We do not currently hold funds in a bank-administered trust account structure, and Clearhold Limited is not a Central Bank of Kenya-licensed payment service provider. Company registration is now complete; we are actively reviewing what further financial-services registration is appropriate for our scale of operations with legal counsel.

5. Electronic Transactions

5.1 Kenya Information and Communications Act

Our electronic transactions are designed with the Kenya Information and Communications Act in mind, including:

Legal recognition of electronic records and signatures
Secure electronic communication protocols
Consumer protection in electronic commerce

6. Consumer Protection Compliance

6.1 Consumer Protection Act

We comply with the Consumer Protection Act by:

Providing clear and accurate information about services and fees
Maintaining a fair dispute resolution process
Prohibiting unfair business practices
Ensuring transparency in all communications

7. Tax Compliance

7.1 Tax Obligations

SecureEscrow Kenya complies with all tax obligations including:

Corporate Income Tax
Value Added Tax (VAT) where applicable
Withholding Tax on payments
Digital Service Tax (DST) compliance

7.2 User Tax Obligations

Users are responsible for their own tax obligations. SecureEscrow may provide transaction records to tax authorities as required by law.

8. M-PESA Integration

Payments into and out of escrow run through Safaricom's official M-PESA Daraja API. Specifically:

Paying into escrow: when you start a transaction, you receive a genuine M-PESA STK Push prompt directly from Safaricom on your phone. You enter your own M-PESA PIN to confirm - we never see, ask for, or store your PIN at any point.
Payment confirmation: Safaricom sends us a signed confirmation once your payment is received; we cross-check the confirmed amount against the transaction before marking funds as secured, so a mismatched or tampered confirmation can't be used to falsely mark a transaction as paid.
Releasing funds: for sellers who choose M-PESA as their payout method, release is sent directly to their phone via Safaricom's B2C API once you confirm delivery. (Till and Paybill payouts are processed manually, since Safaricom's automated payout API does not support paying those directly.)
We comply with Safaricom's M-PESA API Terms of Service and applicable transaction limits.

9. Complaint Handling

If something goes wrong with a transaction or you have a privacy concern, contact us directly using the details in Section 12 - we handle every report personally. If your concern is about data privacy specifically, you're also entitled to contact the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner (ODPC) directly.

10. Regulatory Updates

We're actively working through what business registration and regulatory approach is appropriate for our scale of operations, with proper legal guidance. This page will be updated as that work progresses - material changes will be communicated through our website or direct notification.

11. Security Measures in Place Today

Rather than claim audits we haven't undergone, here's a straightforward summary of what's actually protecting your data and transactions right now:

All access tokens are cryptographically hashed, never stored in readable form
Payment confirmations are cross-verified against expected transaction amounts before being trusted
Rate limiting is applied across the platform to slow down automated abuse
All traffic is encrypted end-to-end (HTTPS)
Unverified visitors can never see full phone numbers or payout details for a transaction that isn't theirs

12. Contact Us

For any concerns about how we handle your data, a transaction, or this compliance page itself:

SecureEscrow Kenya
Email: compliance@securescrowkenya.com