Sidian Bank, formerly K-Rep bank, has posted a profit after tax of KSh 1.73 Bn for the year ended 31 December 2025, a sixfold increase from KSh 287.35 Mn, delivering the strongest result in the lender's 40-year history.
- •The deposit base, once built on retail and SME customers, now leans heavily on public sector institutions, which has seen total assets expand 50.8% to KSh 90.80 Bn from KSh 60.20 Bn as customer deposits rose 62.9% to KSh 72.30 Bn from KSh 44.38 Bn.
- •Interest income from loans and advances fell 4.9% to KSh 4.48 Bn despite a 10.8% increase in net loans to KSh 27.53 Bn.
- •The Central Bank of Kenya reclassified Sidian from Tier 3 (small) to Tier 2 (medium) in September 2025 after its market share crossed the 1% threshold for the first time.
Net interest income rose 54.6% to KSh 4.43 Bn while non-interest income more than doubled to KSh 3.80 Bn from KSh 1.73 Bn.
The standout line was "other income," which jumped from KSh 188.76 Mn to KSh 2.09 Bn, an elevenfold increase that accounted for 55.0% of total non-interest income. The bank has not disclosed the composition of this item in the published extracts. Other fees and commissions rose 35.4% to KSh 1.09 Bn, while foreign exchange trading income fell 40.3% to KSh 192.04 Mn.
Public Sector Deposits
The lender's deposit base has nearly tripled from KSh 27.62 Bn at the end of 2023. The growth has been fuelled by a wave of public sector deposit mandates, many of them first-time relationships for the bank. Nairobi County Government designated Sidian as its principal banker in October 2025, shifting accounts from Co-operative Bank and Equity Bank. The county's health facilities, revenue collection operations, donor fund management, and Facility Improvement Fund now run through Sidian. The bank also serves as a receiving agent for the Social Health Authority and the housing levy.
Beyond Nairobi County, Sidian has won deposits from several state corporations, including Kenya Railways, where it serves as a primary banker, and KEMSA, where the lender ranks among the top deposit holders, among others. In March 2026, Nairobi MCAs approved a KSh 1.7 Bn monthly payroll overdraft facility with the bank, allowing City Hall to bridge cash-flow gaps when national government disbursements are delayed.
The bank channeled the bulk of its new deposits into Treasury bills and bonds. Government securities holdings (held-to-maturity and available-for-sale combined) more than doubled to KSh 49.05 Bn from KSh 23.72 Bn, and now represent 54.0% of total assets, up from 12.1% a decade ago. Interest income from government paper rose 115.0% to KSh 4.51 Bn, overtaking loans as the bank's largest income line for the first time.
Total operating income rose 79.2% to KSh 8.24 Bn. Operating expenses grew 45.7% to KSh 6.03 Bn, pushed up by an 87.5% increase in loan loss provisions to KSh 2.44 Bn and a 26.9% rise in staff costs to KSh 1.72 Bn. The cost-to-income ratio improved to 73.2% from 89.9%, the best in the bank's history.
Ownership overhaul
The financial transformation has coincided with a wholesale change in ownership. Centum Investment Company, which held 83.4% of Sidian through Bakki Holdco as recently as 2022, completed its full exit in March 2026 after a 25-year involvement that began when the bank operated as K-Rep. A planned KSh 4.3 Bn sale to Nigeria's Access Bank collapsed in January 2023 after conditions were not met, forcing Centum into a piecemeal divestiture.
The current shareholder register is dominated by a consortium led by Solomon Muriithi Maina's Wizpro Enterprises (24.95%), alongside Afram Limited (24.36%) and Pioneer General Insurance (16.89%). Former Ugandan attorney-general William Byaruhanga holds 14.63% through Kenbe Investments, acquired for KSh 1.03 Bn in September 2025. CEO Chege Thumbi has disclosed plans to raise an additional KSh 3 Bn in fresh capital on top of a recently completed KSh 3 Bn rights issue, with KSh 580 Mn awaiting allotment at year-end.
Asset quality and capital
Gross non-performing loans rose 6.8% to KSh 8.23 Bn, a comparatively modest increase relative to the 71.9% jump the previous year. But the NPL stock has grown relentlessly over the longer term, from KSh 776.42 Mn in 2014 to KSh 8.23 Bn, a tenfold increase, while net loans grew only 2.6 times over the same period. Loan loss provisions against NPLs increased to KSh 3.10 Bn from KSh 2.65 Bn, lifting the coverage ratio to 37.7% from 34.4%. Net NPL exposure after deducting discounted security values widened to KSh 112.11 Mn from KSh 62.29 Mn.
Shareholders' funds grew 41.1% to KSh 9.72 Bn, bolstered by retained earnings of KSh 2.33 Bn and the rights issue proceeds. Core capital stood at approximately KSh 6.8 Bn as of September 2025 according to earlier disclosures, above the CBK's new minimum requirement of KSh 3 Bn.
The concentration question
Sidian's trajectory is without recent precedent in Kenyan banking. No other lender has grown deposits by 162% in two years, vaulted from Tier 3 to Tier 2, and delivered a sixfold profit jump simultaneously. But the growth rests on a narrow foundation.
The Nairobi County relationship, the most visible of the public sector mandates, has drawn sustained political and legal scrutiny. Senator Edwin Sifuna questioned the shift from a Tier 1 bank, calling it "baffling." Civil rights group Bunge La Mwananchi has petitioned the High Court, arguing the directive breaches constitutional provisions on public participation and transparency. The fee structure under the proposed revenue collection partnership has not been disclosed, drawing comparisons with JamboPay's previous 4.5% commission arrangement that was terminated following compliance disputes.
The bank's balance sheet reflects the speed of the transformation. Government securities represent 54.0% of total assets, loans just 30.3%. A decade ago, those proportions were roughly reversed. While the spread of mandates across multiple state entities (Nairobi County, SHA, the housing levy, Kenya Railways, KEMSA, among others) provides more diversification than a single-counterparty reading would suggest, the deposits share a common characteristic: they are policy-driven rather than relationship-driven, and can be redirected with a change in administration or procurement cycle.
Sidian's SACCO partnerships (more than 120 across Kenya) and planned branch expansion from 30 to over 100 locations suggest management is aware of the diversification imperative. Whether the bank can convert its current momentum into a durable franchise, anchored by sticky retail and SME deposits alongside its institutional book, will determine whether FY2025 marks the start of a sustained new chapter or a cyclical peak.
