CBK to unveil new loan pricing instrument

The Central Bank of Kenya will unveil a pricing mechanism that allows borrowers to compare different bank loan costs on standardised parameters, rather than on interest rates alone. The Annual Percentage Rate (APR) pricing model will further allow consumers compare lending rates offered by banks on a common computation model [...]

Excise duty stamp sets stage for fresh consumer price rise

Consumers of excisable goods will pay more when the Sh1.50 excise duty stamp fee and other costs associated with installation of a new sin tax system, manufacturers have said. Brewers, juice processors, soft drink makers and water bottling firms are up in arms against the new stamp cost. They have promised to pass on the costs associated with installing of the so-called excise goods management system to consumers, setting them up for retail price inflation [...]

Oduor-Otieno leaves Deloitte to become director of Standard Bank

Former KCB chief executive Martin Oduor-Otieno has retired as a partner at Deloitte East Africa to take up a new role as a non-executive director of South Africa’s Standard Bank Group, the largest lender on the continent by assets. The Standard Bank appointment is seen as a move by the multinational to tap his experience in the financial services industry [...]

Uchumi’s networth turns negative as liabilities surpass assets by Sh182m

Uchumi Supermarkets’ total liabilities have surpassed its assets by nearly Sh200 million, putting the firm in a negative equity position. Uchumi’s heavy debt load of Sh6.3 billion against a total asset base of Sh6.1 billion has crystallised into a negative equity of Sh181.8 million. Uchumi becomes the second Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) traded company to have a negative shareholder equity balance after national carrier Kenya Airways [...]

Luxury home prices up as Nairobi’s global ranking rises

Prices of high-end homes in Kenya rose by 2.9 per cent in 2015 from the marginal 1.4 per cent performance recorded in 2014, according to a new report by property management firm Knight Frank. Nairobi climbs up to 33 in list of cities behind Cape Town and Johannesburg.  Luxury homes in the capital looked attractive to high net-worth individuals last year as other investment classes such as equities underperformed [...]

Double taxation hurting farmers, warns council

Double taxation by the national and county governments is scaring away potential investors, The Kenya Flower Council (KFC) has said. The council said the entry of county governments has led to a multiplicity of taxes and levies. KFC executive officer Jane Ngige said taxation by both levels of government had made it expensive to do business in the country [...]

Africa Oil to trim Kenya operations as global commodity prices decline

Canada’s Africa Oil will scale down exploration this year due to the uncertainty in global prices, said the company as it reported having spent Sh21 billion on its Kenyan operations. Africa Oil and its UK-based partner Tullow — which have discovered oil in Turkana County — will drill only one well this year due to the low price of oil in the international market that is discouraging investment in new resources[...]

Malaysian football tycoon set to open Nairobi Tune hotel in June

A hotel associated with Malaysian tycoon Tony Fernandes, who owns English Premier League club Queens Park Rangers (QPR), is set to open the doors of its Nairobi outlet in June. The 280-room facility which cost an estimated Sh2.9 billion will be operating on a ‘no frills’ model, where customers only pay for the amenities they use and are charged a discounted fee for early bookings — typical of budget airlines [...]