Author: Korir Issa

The Central Bank of Kenya’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) raised the base lending rate by 75 basis points to 9.5 per cent from 8.75 per cent. The MPC said there was room for further tightening, which is expected to add upward pressure to loan payments linked to interbank rates due to sustained inflationary pressures. In its topical note early in the week, Genghis Capital said the MPC would adopt a hawkish stance and hike the CBR by 25bps in the March meeting to anchor rising inflation expectations while supporting a healthy private sector credit growth momentum. Headline inflation averaged 7.64…

Diamond Trust Bank will pay shareholders its most significant dividend after posting a profit of KSh6.79 billion on higher funded and non-funded income, translating to a 54 per cent jump in net earnings. Shareholders will receive KSh1.4 billion in dividends, representing a 66 per cent higher payout than in 2022. The bank’s total operating income surged 21.76 per cent to KSh31.9 billion, driven by net interest and non-interest income growth.  DTB Board of Directors has recommended a final dividend of KSh5 per share for 2022 compared to the previous year’s KSh3 per share.  “Following this strong performance, the board has…

Diageo Plc’s Kenyan unit has completed the partial tender offer to increase its aggregate equity stake in East African Breweries from 50.03% (395.6 million shares out of 790.8 million outstanding shares) to 65%. The offer, worth Ksh 22.73 billion, was made in October 2022. Diageo Kenya received valid tenders from 1,697 shareholders, amounting to 143.5 million Ordinary Shares in two phases of the tender offer. This resulted in an oversubscription rate of 121.2%. Diageo Kenya accepted the maximum of 118.4 million Ordinary Shares as specified in the tender offer. EABL Tender Offer Results Shares accepted under the Guaranteed Allocation Pool (mn) Shares accepted…

CIC Insurance Group Plc reported a net profit of Ksh 1.1 billion, up by 63.6% for the year ended December 2022. “The strong performance was driven by the continued execution of our transformational initiatives focusing on customer experience, performance management, operational efficiency, digital transformation, research and innovation, cost competitiveness, and debt management,” it said. https://youtu.be/gaO4P75HVwo General Insurance Business Gross Written Premium grew by 21% to Kshs 13.8 Billion in 2022 from Kshs. 11.4 Billion in reported in 2021. Profit Before tax was up by 35% to Kshs. 872 Million compared to Kshs. 644 Million in 2021 attributable to business growth,…

Co-operative Bank of Kenya reported a 33% jump in net profit at KSh22 billion for the financial year ending in December 2022. It reported a net profit of KSh16.5 billion reported in 2021. Co-operative Bank has recommended a dividend of KSh1.50 per share, a 50% increase on the KSh1 paid out in 2021. “The strong performance has led to a sustained increase in shareholder value as reflected in the competitive return on equity of 21.2 per cent,” Co-op Bank chief executive Gideon Muriuki. https://twitter.com/Coopbankenya/status/1636623450788724737?s=20

The petrol price was raised by Ksh 2 per litre on Tuesday; diesel and kerosene remained unchanged at Ksh 162.00 and Ksh 145.94, respectively, in Nairobi from March 15th to April 14th, 2023, pricing cycle. This means the cost of super petrol will rise to Ksh 179.20 per litre in Nairobi. “The price of diesel has been cross-subsidized with that of Super Petrol while a subsidy of Ksh. 23.49 /litre has been maintained for Kerosene to cushion consumers from the otherwise high prices,” Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA) stated. The prices are inclusive of the 8 per cent Value…