I&M Bank Partners with ThetaRay to Deploy Full Cognitive AI Financial Crime Compliance Platform Across East Africa

(BUSINESS WIRE)--ThetaRay, a global leader in Cognitive AI financial crime compliance, today announced a landmark partnership with I&M Group PLC, a leading Regional Financial Services Group in Africa. The partnership will see the deployment of ThetaRay’s advanced AML (Anti-Money Laundering) platform across I&M Group’s operations in Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Uganda, and Mauritius.

This implementation spans the entire compliance lifecycle, from onboarding and sanctions screening to dynamic customer risk assessment, transaction monitoring, alerting, investigations, and regulatory reporting. Consolidating multiple processes into a single unified system will allow I&M Group to move beyond fragmented and manual compliance operations, to a centralized, AI-powered framework capable of scaling across multiple jurisdictions and business lines.

Commenting on the partnership, Jamie Loden, I&M Bank Chief Operating Officer, stated: “ThetaRay distinguishes itself as a genuine AI-driven solution, setting a new standard for managing financial crime risk. Its sophisticated technology brings together disparate compliance tasks into one streamlined system, empowering our teams to achieve greater accuracy and respond rapidly to AML threats."

The partnership underscores I&M Group’s strategic commitment to building a next-generation compliance infrastructure that supports both regulatory resilience and scalable regional expansion. “As East Africa’s regulatory landscape rapidly evolves, with central banks emphasizing intelligence-led oversight and digital reporting, this collaboration with ThetaRay positions I&M at the forefront of proactive risk governance,” noted Zipporah Gitau, Group Chief Risk and Compliance Officer at I&M Group. “By transforming how we detect, assess, and report financial crime, we are building a dynamic compliance foundation that not only meets today’s regulatory demands but powers our growth across the region.”

ThetaRay’s platform will replace siloed legacy systems with a single, holistic compliance architecture. The rollout will cover key use cases including retail and corporate banking, trade finance, investment banking, capital markets, remittance, and e-wallet services. It incorporates ThetaRay’s latest innovations, such as the Generative AI Risk Catalog, enabling compliance teams with a smarter, faster way to manage evolving regulatory and operational risk. Pre-configured and continuously updated, it enables institutions to deploy relevant, explainable and regulator-aligned risk typologies at scale.

Peter Reynolds, CEO of ThetaRay, said: "This proactive move by I&M Group reflects a strong commitment to operational excellence and regulatory agility. By adopting ThetaRay’s full-stack platform, I&M Group is setting a new benchmark in East Africa, proving that AI-first compliance can be both a shield against financial crime and a catalyst for growth. This is a model for how forward-thinking banks can stay resilient and build trust in the face of emerging risks."

About ThetaRay

ThetaRay harnesses the power of Cognitive AI for financial crime compliance, enabling financial institutions to precisely identify legitimate customers while flagging bad actors. The SaaS solutions overcome the limitations of traditional rule-based systems by shortening long implementation lifecycles, enabling efficient, risk-aware compliance operations. By transforming compliance from a regulatory obligation into a driver of growth, ThetaRay allows institutions to scale faster and expand confidently into new markets. By uncovering hidden criminal networks and delivering actionable insights, ThetaRay empowers organizations to combat evolving threats, maintain positive regulator relationships, and enhance customer experiences. Implemented at some of the world’s leading financial institutions including Santander, Clear Bank, Mashreq Bank, Payoneer, Onafriq and Travelex, ThetaRay helps financial institutions thrive, fostering trust and confidence across the global financial ecosystem.

I&M Group PLC

I&M Group has a long-standing presence in the Kenyan market with presence in banking, insurance and real estate. The Group offers a full range of banking and financial services covering corporate, business and personal banking, wealth management, bancassurance and advisory services with presence spanning across five countries in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda and in Mauritius through a joint venture with CIEL Group (Bank One).

I&M Group PLC is regulated by the Central Bank of Kenya, Capital Markets Authority of Kenya and the Nairobi Securities Exchange.

For more information visit www.imbankgroup.com

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