Notes on compliance, done properly.
Plain-language explainers, practical guidance, and field notes for Ethiopian capital-market, banking and public institutions.
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NBE Widened Its Virtual Asset Ban in July. Here's the STR Trigger Most AML Programmes Still Miss
NBE's July 2026 Public Notice on Virtual Assets, paired with August's ban on seven crypto apps, turns crypto exposure from a risk rating into a reportable pattern. What compliance teams should add to their escalation checklist.
Ethiopia Is About to License Its First Mutual Funds. Here's Who Needs to Be Ready
ECMA has finalised Ethiopia's Collective Investment Schemes directive and sent it to the Ministry of Justice. What fund managers, custodian banks and boards should build before it clears the last procedural step.
No More Auditors for Life: What Ethiopia's Six-Year Rotation Rule Means for Insurers' Audit Committees
NBE's Directive No. SIB/64/2026 caps an insurer's external auditor at six years and requires competitive bidding. What audit committees need to build before their next tender.
Can Your Auditor Also Run Your Deal? A New Licence Puts the Question to Ethiopian Boards
ECMA licensed Deloitte Ethiopia as an investment bank on 31 August 2026. What the dual-role scenario means for conflict checks when Ethiopian boards pick capital-markets advisers.
Ethiopia Just Scored Its Own AfCFTA Readiness. Here's the Checklist Your Trade Finance Desk Should Run
Ethiopia completed its first AFIRM review of AfCFTA Protocol on Trade in Goods implementation in Bishoftu this August. Here's a five-point self-assessment risk and audit teams can run against the same criteria.
ESAAMLG's 2026 Kigali Meetings Just Reset the AML Bar From 'Do You Have a Policy' to 'Does It Work'
ESAAMLG's 2026 Kigali meetings are themed 'From Technical Compliance to Demonstrable Outcome.' What that shift means for Ethiopian AML/CFT programmes and the evidence file worth building now.
Proclamation No. 1426/2026 Just Put a 48-Hour Clock on Every Ethiopian Bank's Cyber Incidents
Ethiopia's Critical Infrastructure Cybersecurity Proclamation No. 1426/2026 gives banks 48 hours to report a cyber incident or face a fine. What compliance teams need to build before the one-year grace period ends.
Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda Just Started Writing the Region's Payment Rulebook. Ethiopia Isn't in the Room
The EAC just moved its Cross-Border Payment System Masterplan into implementation. Ethiopia isn't a member, but the governance gap it's building around is one Ethiopian risk teams can benchmark against now.
Meba Just Registered Securities With ECMA. Here's What Changes for Every MFI Board
Meba became the first Ethiopian microfinance institution to register shares with ECMA. Registration brings insider-information duties MFI boards have never had to formalise before.
Nine Questions Every Ethiopian Payment Provider's Risk Team Should Be Able to Answer
NBE's ONPS/10/2025 doubled the capital bar, capped ownership and mandated wallet interoperability for Ethiopian payment providers. A risk team's readiness Q&A, from capital adequacy to the 2026-2030 digital payments roadmap.
FXD/04/2026: When 100% FX Retention Doesn't Mean Zero Questions
NBE's FXD/04/2026 lets service exporters retain 100% of FX earnings indefinitely. For bank compliance teams, that changes what a normal retention account looks like, not what due diligence it needs.
SIB/62/2026: Ethiopia's Insurance Brokers Now Need a Credentialed CEO, Not Just a Trading Licence
NBE's Licensing of Insurance Broker Directive SIB/62/2026 sets a qualification-and-experience bar for broker CEOs, ties ownership to Ethiopian nationals, and gives existing firms five years to comply. A workforce-readiness guide for HR and L&D leads.