EADB Secures US$40Mn From OPEC Fund to Boost SME, Infrastructure Growth
The East African Development Bank (EADB) has signed its largest financing agreement yet with the OPEC Fund for International Development, securing a US$40 million loan to accelerate private sector development [...]
Easing Interest Rates Drive More Farmers to Banks Despite Collateral Barriers
The easing monetary policy in Kenya’s credit market is attracting farmers to banks for facilities to finance their operations, with Central Bank listing land expansion, purchasing of machinery, and leasing [...]Cracking Down on Dirty Money: Kenya Signs AML Law, Targets Virtual Assets in New Reforms
President William Ruto has signed into law the Anti-Money Laundering and Combating of Terrorism Financing Laws (Amendment) Bill 2025, days after the European Commission proposed to list Kenya among high-risk jurisdictions with deficiencies [...]Telco-Backed Virtual Cards are Disrupting Africa’s Plastic Payments Dominance
The surge in mobile money-linked Visa and MasterCard virtual cards is reshaping e-commerce and remittances across the continent. Africa’s long-standing reliance on bank-issued plastic cards is facing a serious shake-up. [...]
Future-Proofing SMEs: How SBM Bank is Powering Growth Through Tailored Financing and Advisory Services
NAIROBI, 13 JUNE 2025: Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are the backbone of Kenya’s economy, driving job creation, innovation, and economic growth. According to the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics, [...]
How Higher Capitalisation Will Reshape Kenya's Banks, Economy
Fewer, better capitalised banks may catalyze the mobilization of domestic savings, boost national investment, support economic modernization, and advance Kenya’s Vision 2030 goal of attaining upper-middle or high-income status, comparable [...]Afreximbank Disputes Fitch Ratings Downgrade
The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) has dismissed a downgrade in credit rating by Fitch Ratings, following an assessment that some of its state borrowers were at a higher risk of defaulting [...]Banks To Prioritize Recovery of Personal Loans as Defaults Surge to 20-Year High
The banking sector is sharpening its focus on recovering personal and household loans as the industry grapples with the highest rate of non-performing loans (NPLs) in two decades. Alongside personal [...]Fitch Ratings Downgrades Afreximbank Over High' Credit Risks
Ratings Firm Fitch has downgraded multilateral development bank African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), giving it a negative outlook in its latest outlook. “The Negative Outlook reflects the risk that the debt owed to [...]Sustainable Banking Gains Momentum in Africa, Led by Kenya and South Africa
A new report by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and KPMG East Africa indicates that banks across eight African countries are making gradual but steady progress in embedding [...]Nigerian Fintech Moniepoint Gets Green Light to Acquire Kenyan Microfinance Bank
The Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) has cleared a proposed acquisition by U.S.-based fintech Moniepoint Inc., which plans to take a controlling 78% stake in Sumac Microfinance Bank Limited, marking [...]Access Bank Completes Acquisition of National Bank of Kenya from KCB
Access Bank Plc has completed its acquisition of National Bank of Kenya (NBK) from KCB Group Plc. With the acquisition of 100% of NBK, its second after acquiring and rebranding [...]
