KRA eyes taxpayers’ bank accounts

The Kenya Revenue Authority is set to link its automated taxpayers’ database to bank accounts of ordinary citizens in a move expected to smoke out thousands of tax evaders. The Sh765 million database known as Data Warehouse and Business Intelligence offers a single view of a taxpayer’s profile, linking them with third party systems such as banks and utility firms for easier determination of compliance…[...]

Uhuru visit to Uganda unlocks trade in cheap sugar and meat

Kenya and Uganda have struck a deal allowing cheaper Ugandan sugar into the Kenyan market, ending the long-running feud over the trading of the commodity across their common border. The deal President Uhuru Kenyatta signed with his Ugandan counterpart Yoweri Museveni in Kampala also clears the way for Kenyan traders to export beef to Uganda under similar terms, deepening the commercial ties between Kampala and East Africa’s largest economy…[...]

ARM debt to Nigerian financier hits Sh5.3bn on weak shilling

Cement maker ARM’s debt to Lagos-based Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) has soared to Sh5.3 billion ($52.9 million) or 5.8 per cent more than the original amount of $50 million (Sh5 billion) the company borrowed in 2012. The rise is mainly due to a weakening of the shilling and the Kenyan firm’s deferment of interest payments on the loan…[...]

KenolKobil net profit up to Sh918m on cost-cutting

Oil marketer KenolKobil reported a 73 per cent jump in net profit for the half-year ended June, helped by cost-cutting measures that compensated for lower sales. The firm made a net profit of Sh918.4 million in the period compared to Sh531.1 million a year earlier, a performance that saw the company declare an interim dividend of Sh0.1 (10 cents) per share. Its revenue fell 19.2 per cent to Sh34.8 billion, dipping Sh8.3 billion in absolute terms…[...]

Microfinancier Real People’s Kenya profit drops 26pc on shilling volatility

Microfinancier Real People recorded a 26.7 per cent drop in profit for the full year ending March, which it attributed to lower gains from foreign exchange and increased provisions for bad loans. The shilling has depreciated against the South African currency by nearly six per cent, resulting in the drop in forex earnings. The lender currently has South African Rand denominated loan equivalent to Sh1 billion which it is repaying at 12.6 per cent…[...]

KenGen to trade its carbon credits on local bourse

Kenya Electricity Generating Company (KenGen) is planning to start selling carbon credits on the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) by March next year. The electricity generator is scouting for direct buyers for its carbon credits in the spot markets ahead of an expiry of its UN-­backed, exchange market deal next year…[...]

Civil society groups in Kenya push for laws to criminalise tax evasion

The civil society in Kenya wants Parliament to join them in the push to end tax evasion through enactment of laws that enhance compliance from international trade. This, they argue, will boost revenue collection by the State. They say tougher laws will criminalise tax avoidance and spell harsher penalties for offenders…[...]