Net profit for Kenya's top ten banks rise by 10.8pc to Sh93.81 billion

NAIROBI: Kenya’s top 10 banks registered a 10.8 per cent growth in net earnings to Sh93.81 billion for the financial year ended December 31, 2016.

The growth was despite four of the lenders - Equity Bank, Barclays Bank of Kenya (BBK), Stanbic Bank and NIC Bank - registering a drop in profits after tax.

Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB), Equity Bank and Co-operative Bank remained the top three most profitable lenders respectively and also the only ones with double-digit-billions profits.

However, for the first time in over 10 years, Equity recorded a drop (5.9 per cent) in profits. Despite KCB Group recording a 0.5 per cent growth in profits, the slowest pace in seven years, KCB Bank saw its after-tax profit soar by 19.9 per cent to Sh19.78 billion.

At the same time, Co-operative Bank registered a 24.6 per cent growth in profit to Sh13.05 billion.

“The full-year results just depend on the position a bank was occupying before the interest rate cap set in at the end of third quarter,” said KCB Group Chief Finance Officer Lawrence Kiambi last month when the firm released its results. While the top three banks held firm, BBK was dislodged from position four to six.

Giro Bank acquisition

This was after its profits dropped by 15.4 per cent to Sh7.11 billion. Standard Chartered Bank now sits fourth, an improvement by one position. This was after its profits grew by 39.9 per cent to Sh8.69 billion, the second fastest growth in the top 10 bracket.

I&M Bank, which completed the acquisition of Giro Bank during the period under review, also grew its profits by 3.3 per cent to Sh8.65 billion to close the top-five chart.