How to open a CDS account in Kenya

What a CDS account is

Before 2004, owning shares in Kenya meant holding a paper certificate. Today the record of who owns what is electronic, kept by the Central Depository and Settlement Corporation (CDSC) in the Central Depository System, or CDS. Your CDS account is your entry in that register. When you buy Safaricom shares, the seller's account goes down and yours goes up; when a company pays a dividend or issues bonus shares, the registrar reads the CDS register to see who is entitled.

The account itself is free of charge to open at CDSC and has no minimum balance: a zero balance is fine. It is opened for you by a Central Depository Agent (CDA), which is any licensed stockbroker, investment bank or custodian bank on CDSC's list of agents. The agent that opened the account is the only one that can trade on it, but the CDS number stays yours for life.

Documents you need

CDSC's own list for an individual account is short: the ID, two photos and the signed form. Brokers add the KRA PIN and your contact details. Have these ready before you start, in the exact names that appear on your ID:

• Original national ID or passport, plus a copy. Foreign documents must be notarised.
• KRA PIN. Asked for by the broker, not on CDSC's list: brokers and registrars report dividend withholding tax against your PIN, so every onboarding form has a field for it.
• Two recent coloured passport-size photos. In an app you take one with the phone camera.
• The CDS 1 form, completed and signed. Apps present it as an onboarding flow; at a branch it is paper.
• Contact details: a phone number and an email address for statements and contract notes, and a next of kin.

Companies, chamas and registered groups need the registration or incorporation certificate, a board resolution, a CR12 for companies, and the directors' IDs and photos. A minor's account uses the child's birth certificate plus the parent's or guardian's documents.

Three ways to open one

1. 1

   The Dosikaa app

   Dosikaa is the exchange's own app, built with CDSC. You download it, sign up, choose a licensed stockbroker from the list inside the app, and it opens a new CDS account or links an existing one. CDSC's page says you can start with as little as KES 500. The broker you pick is the one that will execute your orders.

2. 2

   A broker's app

   Most licensed stockbrokers and investment banks have an app or web portal. Onboarding is the CDS 1 form as a set of screens: ID photos, a selfie, the KRA PIN, a signature drawn on the screen. Funding is usually by M-PESA paybill.

3. 3

   A branch

   Walk into a stockbroker's office or a bank branch that acts as a CDA with your original ID, your KRA PIN and photos. You sign the paper CDS 1 form and receive a duplicate copy. Useful if your ID details need explaining or you are opening for a company or a group.

Whichever door you use, the licence matters more than the app. Check the firm against the CMA list of stockbrokers and investment banks before you send any money. A genuine broker takes deposits into a client account in the firm's name, never into a personal M-PESA number.

How long it takes

CDSC does not publish a processing time. In practice, app onboarding that passes its checks is approved the same day or the next working day, and brokers typically quote 24 to 48 hours for a new CDS number. A paper application at a branch can take a working day or two longer because the form travels to the broker's back office before it reaches CDSC.

You know the account exists when you receive the CDS account number by SMS or email. Keep it: it is the reference you use when funding by paybill, when asking for statements, and when moving shares between brokers. Some agents also agree a secret question and answer with you at opening, which they use to confirm your identity on the phone.

Fees on the account

CDSC's own fee schedule (as at September 2026) lists no account-opening charge. The costs you will meet are these:

Figures are from CDSC's fee page and FAQ. Brokers add their commission on trades, and some charge an annual maintenance fee; the brokers and fees guide has the breakdown.

More than one account, and moving shares

You may open accounts through as many brokers as you like. Each broker can only see and trade the account it opened, so shares bought through broker A sit with broker A until you move them. To move them, your current agent signs form CDS 4A and the new agent signs CDS 4B; CDSC then transfers the securities. Your CDS number does not change.

Joint accounts are allowed, and an account can be operated under a power of attorney. If you still hold paper certificates from before 2004, the same agent can immobilise them into your CDS account.

Opening from outside Kenya

Kenyans abroad and foreign nationals open CDS accounts through a broker without travelling. The difference is paperwork: a notarised copy of the passport, proof of address abroad, a KRA PIN (KRA issues PINs to non-residents through iTax), and bank details for dividends. Funding is by international transfer into the broker's client account, since M-PESA needs a Kenyan line. The diaspora guide covers tax and currency.

Common problems and fixes

• Name does not match. The name on the CDS 1 form must match the ID and the KRA PIN exactly, including middle names and spelling. A mismatch is the most common reason an application stalls.
• Wrong or inactive KRA PIN. Log in to iTax and confirm the PIN is active and in your name before applying.
• Photo rejected. Plain background, face uncovered, no glare. Apps re-prompt; branches ask for new prints.
• Forgotten which broker holds your shares. Register for CDSC's SMS service (text "Register" to 22372, KES 10 per SMS) or email CDSC's helpdesk with your ID number; a statement shows every account and its agent.
• A dormant account from years ago. It still exists. Any CDA can help you reactivate it or transfer the shares with forms 4A and 4B.

Where to look next

With the CDS number in hand, the next step is the first order: Your first order: market vs limit. The full sequence, from account to settlement, is in How to buy shares in Kenya, and every listed company is one click from the board.