How Imperial Bank chief stole savers’ billions

Imperial Bank’s former managing director Abdulmalek Janmohamed ran an elaborate fraud scheme that robbed the lender of Sh34 billion over a period of 13 years, forcing the central bank to shut it down earlier this month.. Mr Janmohamed siphoned out billions of shillings from Imperial Bank and manipulated its software systems to hide it [...]

Imperial Bank could re-open in November, CBK says

Imperial Bank is set for re-opening next month if top depositors agree to convert their savings to shareholding, the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) has said. CBK will be meeting with the wealthy depositors on Wednesday to sell the proposal that will also see current shareholders inject additional capital into the bank [...]

Treasury cash crunch causes S&P to downgrade KCB’s credit rating

KCB, the largest local bank, has become the latest casualty of Kenya’s rapid financial deterioration after a national rating downgrade was extended to the lender. S&P said it would only revise KCB’s rating to stable after Kenya’s rating is revised upwards. KCB said the downgrade was expected but was not a reflection of the bank’s fundamentals: “This is not an indication in any way of KCB’s performance or ability but the sovereign influence on the rating playing its part [...]

Equity holding Sh86bn cash as high rates slow down loans

Equity Bank’s cash position rose by 63 per cent in the year to September following a slow uptake of loans in a scenario likely to be replicated across the banking industry. Individuals and businesses have shelved borrowing plans in fear of high interest rates, which have hit 27 per cent. Credit officers in different banks disclosed they were lagging behind their lending targets. Bankers expect the high interest rates to prevail for about a year as savvy corporate depositors demand high interest rates for one-year fixed deposits [...]

Foreign reserves rise Sh33bn, CBK denies tapping IMF facility

Central Bank of Kenya’s foreign exchange reserves have increased by Sh33 billion ($323 million) in just three weeks even as the regulator maintained no funds had been released by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The increase in reserves would normally be a result of purchases from the market and disbursements by donors to government CBK accounts. Among the reasons seen as contributing to the inflows of foreign currency into the local market is the high interest rates being paid on government securities [...]

Stanlib plans Sh2bn Greenspan Mall buy as IFC injects cash

Stanlib Investment, freshly boosted by Sh1.5 billion IFC injection, plans to buy the Greenspan Mall in Donholm for Sh2 billion after its Real Estate Investment Trust (Reit) sale. Stanlib additionally plans to buy Highway House, an office block in Nairobi’s Industrial Area and Bay Holdings Industrial Area Branch—a warehouse- for a combined Sh318 million. Stanlib is also looking at the possibility of investing in five other office blocks in Nairobi, a shopping mall and an office block in Mombasa [...]

Cytonn Investments targets diaspora with US office

Private equity firm Cytonn Investments has opened an office in Maryland, US, targeting the diaspora. Kenyans in the US and Canada account for half of the remittances sent every year. The firm, which recently raised Sh2 billion from foreign institutional and local investors, has said it will mainly invest in the real estate sector [...]