(Bloomberg) -- After Nigerian fintech Korapay’s account in Kenya was frozen in July on suspicion of money laundering, investigators found only a single transaction, and that was for funds needed to apply for a local license.

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It took three months to unblock the account, and Korapay is still waiting for a license to operate in the country, according to Chief Executive Officer Dickson Nsofor.

Korapay is one of a number of fintechs, including Flutterwave Inc. and Chipper Cash, facing regulatory hurdles as they try to enter the Kenyan market. The layers of bureaucracy drive up transaction costs for remittances, which are a key source of income for many locals, making the fees among the highest in the world.

“We want to be highly regulated,” Nsofor said. “But licensing and regulation is the key that the gatekeepers use to push new players out.”

Remittances — international transfers back to a worker’s home country — are vital to Kenya’s economy, accounting for more than 3% of the gross domestic product last year. Yet, even as the population embraces fintech, with nearly twice as many people using mobile money than holding traditional bank accounts, technology’s promise of lowering the cost of sending funds has remained elusive.

Bureaucratic hurdles can be difficult to navigate in Kenya. The local regulator in July ordered two of Africa’s most successful startups, Flutterwave and Chipper Cash, to stop offering remittances and payments in the country because they weren’t licensed.

Kenya has welcomed some new players. Zepz Group, which operates services Wave Mobile Money Inc. and WorldRemit, is among the fintech firms operating in the market.