Rosemary Kimwatu Koech, Head of Data Protection at KCB Bank Group, died at her home in Ngong on Friday morning.
Officials said they suspected she died by suicide.
The motive was not immediately known and the matter is under probe.
She was a familiar name across Kenya’s technology, fintech, legal and data protection circles, and her death has left those communities reeling.
Her family has not released a cause of death, and the circumstances remain undisclosed.
She was a prominent figure in the country’s digital rights and data protection community, following her death at her Ngong home on Friday, August 21.
Koech spent nearly two decades moving between law, public policy, technology and finance, and her focus sharpened over time on a single question: how should organisations collect, use and protect personal data. That question became her life’s work.
She joined KCB Bank Group in June 2022 as Data Protection Officer, arriving from Safaricom PLC, where she had served as Public Policy Manager.
A year later, in June 2023, KCB promoted her to Head of Data Protection, putting her in charge of the Group’s data protection compliance.
Announcing the Safaricom to KCB move on LinkedIn in 2022, she called it “a season of growth and transition” and said she was looking forward to the challenge ahead.
Before Safaricom, Koech had already built a reputation spanning legal and regulatory work in Kenya’s growing tech sector. She served as Head of Public Policy and Legal and Regulatory Specialist at Oxygène Marketing Communications, and held senior legal and regulatory posts at fintech firms WayaWaya and MODE. Her professional path started even earlier and further afield, in marketing, before she shifted into industrial relations and legal practice. She later worked as a Legal and Administrative Officer at Caritas Nairobi, a role that preceded her long run in the tech industry.
The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) was among the first to mourn her passing, describing her as central to the advancement of tech policy, internet governance, and digital rights across the region.
Koech-Kimwatu served the organisation in several capacities, including as a Board Member, Principal of the Kenya School of Internet Governance (KESIG), and Chair of the Multistakeholder Advisory Groups (MAG) for both the Kenya Internet Governance Forum (KIGF) and East Africa IGF. “Rest in peace, Rosemary. You will be greatly missed and always remembered by the KICTANet community,” the organisation said in a statement, noting that she combined warmth, conviction, humour, and a deep commitment to building inclusive digital spaces.
The Office of the Data Protection Commissioner also released a statement, recognising her as a trusted voice and champion of responsible personal data use. The office described her contribution as extending well beyond formal professional engagement.
“Her passing is a great loss to the industry and the wider data protection community. We extend our heartfelt condolences to her family, friends, colleagues, and all those who had the privilege of knowing and working with her,” the office said. The Data Privacy and Governance Society of Kenya (DPGSK) mourned Koech-Kimwatu as its founding and first vice president, crediting her with helping to shape Kenya’s privacy sector from its earliest stages.
Koech-Kimwatu’s death marks the loss of one of Kenya’s most recognisable voices in the intersection of technology, law, and public policy. What was Rosemary’s role at KCB? Rosemary, KCB Bank Group’s head of data protection, died at her home in Ngong on Friday, August 21.
KICTANet confirmed her death and paid tribute to her contributions as a board member and advocate for privacy and responsible data management. Koech had nearly two decades of experience spanning law, fintech, public policy and data protection.
