Kenyan lenders record major rise in profits

In an economy battling to find its footing following the Covid-19 epidemic shocks, Kenya’s banking industry is bullish, with top banks reporting big profits and record dividend payouts to stockholders for the year ending December 31.

Following a period of lower net earnings, widespread layoffs, and dividend freezes in 2020, Kenyan lenders have resurfaced amid modest revenue growth and lower operating expenses.

So far, six top-tier banks have released financial performance data for the 12 months ending December 31, with net profit increase averaging over 80%.

Absa Bank Kenya, with a 161 percent increase in net profit, was followed by Equity Bank (99 percent), KCB (74 percent), Standard Chartered Bank Kenya (66 percent), Co-operative Bank (53 percent), and Stanbic Holdings Ltd. (39 percent).