6 Investment accounts you need in 2024

6 investment accounts you need to know about this year as an investor in Kenya.

In the spirit of the new year, here’s a quick article to help new and seasoned investors in Kenya diversify their investment portfolios. Yes, you’ve read that right. In this article, we’ll go through 6 investment accounts that investors in Kenya need to know about.

Let’s jump right in.

1. Money market Fund account

There has been a debate as to whether a money market fund is a saving or investment tool. But for the purpose of this article, we are going to use it as an investment tool.  A tool to save up for larger investments like bonds.

For example, let’s say that you want to invest in a government bond this year. However, you don’t have the minimum investment of kes 100,000. Well, you can save up kes 10,000 each month for ten months to be able to invest in this bond in November 2024.

Why a money market fund account and not a bank account, you might ask.

In the money market fund, you’ll earn interest as you accumulate enough funds to invest in large investments. As opposed to letting your money stay idle in a bank account losing to inflation.

Start with what you have.

2. A CBK CSD account

The second type of investment account is a CBK CSD ( Central Securities Depository) account for investing in government securities. Government securities include government bills and bonds.

How can you open this investment account?

You can open a CBK CSD account by visiting the CBK website or downloading the CBK App, dubbed the Dhow CSD app.

Learn more here

CBK DhowCSD:How to invest in bonds online in Kenya

3. A CDS account

A Central Depository System (CDS) account is a storage for your Kenyan shares. Yes, if you are planning on investing in shares listed on the Kenyan stock market, you’ll need this account.

How can you get a CDS account?

You can get a CDS account by contacting a licensed stockbroker. Your stockbroker will create a CDS account for you.

Note that this account is free. You will not be charged to get it.

Tip: you can invest in shares with different stock brokers using one CDS account number. That is you can have all your shares “under one roof”, ie your CDS account.

Note the difference between the CDS account for shares and the CSD account for securities.

4. A Trading Investment Account

In addition to the CDS account for shares, you need a trading account for investing in shares. Which can also be opened through your stockbroker.

A trading account is used when buying and selling shares on the stock market.

Unlike the CDS account which can be used under multiple stockbrokers, a trading account is unique for each broker. This means that you’ll need a different trading account for a different stockbroker.

That is each broker will give you a unique trading account.

If you would like to learn more about investing in shares listed on the Kenyan stock market, consider enrolling for my stock market course, right here.

Stock market course

5. A foreign stocks account

Did you know that you can invest in foreign stocks while in Kenya?

Yes, you can invest in offshore markets like the US stock market while in Kenya. There are a number of institutions that enable Kenyans to invest in foreign stocks like Google, Facebook, and Apple, to name but a few.

Let me know in the comments section whether I should write an article explaining how to invest in foreign stocks while in Kenya.

6. A USD MMF account

Last year we saw the Kenyan shilling depreciate to an all-time low. To counter this investors are looking into ways to protect themselves against currency depreciation. One way is using USD money market fund accounts.

Yes you can use this type of investment account to hedge against currency depreciation

Stay tuned for an article delving into USD MMFs in Kenya.

Summary of investment accounts 

1.  Money Market Fund account for saving for large investments.
2. A CBK CSD account for investing in government securities
3. A CDS account to store your Kenyan shares
4. A trading account for buying and selling shares
5. A foreign stock account for investing in global markets
6. A USD money market Fund account to hedge against currency depreciation

That’s it 6 investment accounts that all investors in Kenya should know about in the year 2024. Let me know what other investment accounts should Kenyans know about.

Next week we’ll look at ways you can earn passive income this year.

All the best investor, and remember to always Do your own research first before investing. This article was created for educational purposes only.

About Author

Gertrude Njeri

Gertrude Njeri is an expert in creating personal finance content and has a bachelor’s degree in accounting. She is a skilled personal finance content creator with more than three years of expertise (writer, video creator, and editor). Additionally, she excels in simplifying complex subjects into engaging, clear, and easy-to-understand information. Her instructional materials go a long way toward assisting individuals in making wise financial decisions.

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