ADVOKS GLOBAL · KENYA
Proceeds of Crime and Anti-Money Laundering Act
24. Functions and powers of the Centre
Edition: 2025-11-04 · In force
24. Functions and powers of the Centre
The Centre—(a)shall receive, analyse and interpret—(i)all reports made pursuant to section 12;(ii)reports of unusual or suspicious transactions or activities made by reporting institutions pursuant to section 44;(iii)reports of all cash transactions made to reporting institutions pursuant to section 44;(iv)information disclosed to it pursuant to section 42 of the Prevention of Terrorism Act (Cap. 59B); and(v)any additional or other information disclosed to it and obtained by it in terms of this Act, the Prevention of Terrorism Act (Cap. 59B), or any other written law;(b)shall send analysed reports received under this Act to the appropriate law enforcement authorities, any intelligence agency, or any other appropriate supervisory body for further handling if, having considered the reports, the Director-General has reasonable grounds to suspect that a transaction or activity involves proceeds of crime, money laundering, financing of terrorism or proliferation financing;(ba)shall, upon request, share information with a competent authority in so far as the information requested is pursuant to a written law related to combating proceeds of crime, money-laundering, terrorism financing or proliferation financing and is relevant to the execution of the mandate of the requesting competent authority;(c)may, at any time, cause an inspection to be made by an inspector authorised by the Director-General in writing and the inspector may enter the premises of any reporting institution during ordinary business hours to inspect any documents kept under the requirements of this Act, and ask any question relating to the documents, make notes and take copies of the whole or any part of the documents;(d)shall send to the appropriate law enforcement authorities, intelligence agency, or supervisory body any other information derived from an inspection carried out pursuant to paragraph (c) if such inspection gives the Director-General reasonable grounds to suspect that a transaction or activity involves proceeds of crime, money laundering or financing of terrorism or proliferation financing.(e)may instruct any reporting institution to-(i)provide it with such other or additional information or additional documents to enable the centre to properly undertake its functions under this Act; or(ii)take such steps as may be appropriate to facilitate any investigation undertaken or to be undertaken by the Centre, including providing documents and other relevant information.(f)may compile statistics and records, disseminate information within Kenya or elsewhere, and make recommendations arising out of any information received, issue guidelines to reporting institution and advise the Cabinet Secretary;(g)shall design training requirements and may provide such training for any reporting institution in respect of transactions, record-keeping and reporting obligations in accordance with the provisions of this Act;(h)may consult with any relevant person, institution or organization for the purpose of exercising the powers or duties under this Act;(i)may, from time to time, publish in the Gazette such information as may be prescribed by the Cabinet Secretary;(j)shall create and maintain a database of all reports of suspicious transactions, related Government information and such other materials as the Director-General may from time to determine to be relevant to the work of the Centre;(k)may provide information to any foreign financial intelligence unit or appropriate foreign law enforcement authority, subject to provisions of this Act and any conditions as may be considered appropriate by the Director-General;(l)may, on the basis of mutual agreement and reciprocity, enter into any agreement or arrangement, in writing, with a foreign financial intelligence unit which the Director-General considers necessary or desirable for the discharge or performance of the functions of the Centre:Provided that the Director-General is satisfied, on a case by case basis, that the foreign financial intelligence unit has given appropriate undertakings—(i)for protecting the confidentiality of anything communicated to it; and(ii)for controlling the use that will be made of that information including an undertaking that it will not be used as evidence in any proceedings;(m)shall draft the regulations required by this Act, in consultation with the Board, for submission to the Cabinet Secretary for his approval, prior to publication in the Gazette;(n)shall set anti-money laundering policies in consultation with the Board;(o)shall maintain proper books of accounts;(oo)shall have power to compel the production of, or to obtain access to all records, documents or information relevant to monitoring compliance outside the scope of onsite inspection;(p)shall engage in any lawful activity, whether alone or together with any other organization in Kenya or elsewhere, aimed at promoting its objectives;(q)shall perform such other functions in relation to anti-money laundering, counter financing of terrorism and counter proliferation financing as the Cabinet Secretary may direct;(r)may request any supervisory body, monetary authority, financial regulatory authority, fiscal or tax agency, investigative agency or any competent authority to provide it with information where such information is reasonably required for the proper discharge of the functions of the Centre under this Act or for purposes of achieving the objectives of the Act; and(s)shall have all the powers necessary or expedient for the proper performance of its functions.