Hello, I’m Annah. Welcome to today’s edition of The Business Roundup, your go-to source for the latest insights into Kenya’s evolving business scene. In this edition, we will review Equity Group’s impressive profit of Ksh 34.6 billion, highlight the recent fines totaling Ksh 191 million imposed on 11 banks, and examine KeNHA’s decision to reject a US firm’s expressway proposal.
Equity Group has posted a 17% growth in Profit After Tax, reaching Ksh 34.6 billion, up from Ksh 29.6 billion for the period ended 30th June 2025.
The strong performance was driven by a 9% rise in net interest income and an 18% decline in interest expenses, while total costs fell by 2%, supported by a 34% drop in loan loss provisions.
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Equity’s loan book grew by 4% to Ksh 825.1 billion despite a challenging economic environment, while customer deposits rose 2% to Ksh 1.32 trillion, lifting total assets by 3% to Ksh 1.8 trillion.
Equity Group Half-Year Profit Hits Ksh 34.6 Billion
The bank’s subsidiaries recorded double-digit growth in profitability, with Tanzania leading the pack. In Kenya, profit after tax surged 40% to Ksh 19.5 billion, while the Democratic Republic of Congo subsidiary posted a 22% rise to Ksh 9.1 billion.
Tanzania led in growth rate with a 75% jump in earnings to Ksh 1.1 billion, as Uganda and Rwanda posted 40% and 21% gains in profit and assets, respectively.
The company’s regional footprint now accounts for nearly half of its deposits, loans, assets, and revenue, with 46% of profit before tax and 43% of profit after tax coming from outside Kenya.
The lender achieved its strongest quarterly performance in history with a Profit Before Tax of Ksh 22.9 billion in Q2 2025.
Equity Group Managing Director and CEO James Mwangi attributed the growth in profit to disruption in the bank’s business model and transformation.
“Ksh 22.9 billion is the highest quarterly profit we have ever made in the history of Equity. We have innovated a new Equity,” he said.
“This achievement wasn’t about optimizing the business we had but about disrupting our existing business model and completely transforming it.”
KeNHA Rejects US Firm’s Nairobi-Mombasa Expressway Proposal
The Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA) has announced that the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Committee has rejected the privately initiated proposal by Everstrong Capital, a US-based infrastructure firm, for the construction of the Nairobi-Mombasa Usahihi Expressway.
The committee ruled that the proposal did not meet the required criteria for approval.
Following a thorough evaluation of the submitted documents, the PPP Committee, in consultation with the National Treasury and Economic Planning, found the proposal unsuitable and recommended that it be abandoned.
Instead, the committee has directed the contracting authority to revise the project by focusing on expanding the existing A8 highway.
This would involve expanding the existing Nairobi-Mombasa highway rather than building a completely new expressway.
The decision was made following a detailed review of the project report by the PPP Committee of the National Treasury and Economic Planning during its 54th Ordinary meeting held on July 2, 2025.
“The proposal may then be resubmitted to the Committee for a fresh determination in line with Section 43(12) of the PPP Act, 2021,” said KeNHA.
The mega road project was to be constructed under a PPP, covering a 459-km corridor from Mlolongo in Machakos County to Bonje in Mombasa County.
CBK Fines 11 Banks and Forex Bureaus Ksh 191M for Regulatory Breaches
The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) has fined 11 commercial banks and forex bureaus a combined Ksh 191 million for violating lending, capital adequacy, and governance regulations.
The regulator’s 2024 Bank Supervision Annual Report shows that the penalties, equivalent to about USD 1.48 million, were collected in the year to June.
Although the number was down from 12 institutions fined in 2023, CBK warned that the figure still reflects persistent weaknesses in compliance.
“The banking sector must remain stable, resilient, and aligned with customer needs. We will not hesitate to enforce rules that protect the public and the integrity of the financial system,” CBK Governor Dr Kamau Thugge said in the report.
The enforcement actions follow legal reforms under the Business Laws (Amendment) Act, 2024, which took effect in December 2024. The new framework sets penalties at Ksh 20 million or three times the financial benefit gained or loss avoided by an institution’s breach.
The targeted breaches in 2024 included irregular lending practices that failed to comply with risk-based pricing models. Additionally, the banks were found guilty of capital adequacy shortfalls, where they did not maintain the statutory buffer.
KCB Tops List of 10 Largest Banks in Kenya by Market Share
The top 10 banks in Kenya control over 70% of the market, dominating deposits, assets, and shareholders’ funds, according to the Central Bank of Kenya’s 2024 Bank Supervision Annual Report.
KCB Bank Kenya Limited retained its position as the largest bank, holding a 16.6% market share and total net assets worth Ksh 1.28 trillion. It also leads in deposits at Ksh 988.5 billion and shareholders’ funds at 15.5%.
KCB serves the largest customer base in the industry, with 53.6 million deposit accounts and 1.43 million loan accounts.
Equity Bank Kenya Limited holds the second position with a 12.8% market share and assets worth Ksh1.03 trillion. The bank manages deposits totaling Ksh843.6 billion and 10.4% of shareholders’ funds, serving over 14.4 million deposit accounts and 844,445 loan accounts.
Co-operative Bank of Kenya Limited ranks third, with a 9.6% market share and total assets valued at Ksh 687.8 billion.
NCBA Bank Kenya PLC is fourth, holding an 8.3% market share and total assets worth Ksh 588.7 billion. The bank serves 3.3 million deposit accounts and more than 2.07 million loan accounts, strengthened by its strong digital banking presence.
Other leading banks include Absa, Stanbic, I&M Bank, Standard Chartered Bank Kenya, Diamond Trust Bank, and Prime Bank, all holding significant shares.
ALSO BIG THIS WEEK
- Global oil prices fell in the week ending August 8, giving hope to motorists in Kenya as the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA) prepares for the next fuel price review later this week.
- Data from the Central Bank of Kenya’s (CBK) weekly bulletin released on August 8 shows that Murban oil prices dropped to USD 68.25 (Ksh 8,871) per barrel on August 7, down from USD 73.52 (Ksh 9,550) per barrel on July 31.
- The fall in prices was linked to an expected increase in global supply, with OPEC+ planning to raise production by 547,000 barrels per day starting in September. There is also ongoing uncertainty about how new U.S. tariffs will affect global economic growth.
- Safaricom has announced discounts on all new fibre connections within fibre-ready buildings for the next two months. According to the telecommunications company, the offer is available for fibre-to-business connections for companies.
- Kenyan commercial banks posted a combined profit before tax of Ksh260 billion in 2024, with large lenders taking the lion’s share, new data shows.
- Transport Cabinet Secretary Davis Chirchir announced that the government will construct a new airport in Kenya after delays in the planned expansion of the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA).
- The Kenyan pension industry posted its best performance in years, with total assets hitting a record Ksh 1.3 trillion and returns beating inflation by 26%.
- Kenya Ports Authority says its reviewed 2025 tariffs for port and ICD services will take effect from 15 September 2025.
- The government, through the National Youth Council (NYC), has launched Kuna Form portal where Kenyan youth can access job opportunities and career development programs nationwide.
- President William Ruto has announced 113,000 job opportunities for young people across the country.
- As part of the Finance Bill 2026, Kenya plans to raise the monthly tax-free income from Ksh 24,000. The National Assembly’s Finance Committee also aims to review the five tax bands to ease the burden on both top- and low-income earners.
- Absa Bank Kenya PLC has reported a drop in revenue for the half-year ended June 30, 2025. The bank said revenue remained resilient at Ksh 31.5 billion, a marginal 1.2% decline despite the complex operating environment.
- The High Court has halted the government’s plan to import 500,000 MT of duty-free rice, suspending Treasury CS John Mbadi’s July 28 notice after the Farmers Party petition. A hearing is set for August 14, 2025, as farmers warn of harm to local Mwea stocks.
- Kenya is in talks to hand over part of Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) cargo operations, such as running freight trains, to UAE’s Etihad Rail, as the government seeks Ksh 517 billion to extend the railway from Naivasha to Kisumu and Malaba.
- The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) has invited applications from qualified candidates to fill 24,000 teacher internship posts in junior schools to support the implementation of the Competency-Based Curriculum. The commission also announced over 21,000 job vacancies for teachers and school administrators across the country.
- Nairobi Hospital faces possible liquidation after Opticom K. Limited filed an insolvency petition at the High Court’s Commercial & Tax Division, according to a notice in the Kenya Gazette.
Currency Trends
The Kenya Shilling remained stable against major international and regional currencies during the week ending August 7.
It exchanged at Ksh 129.24 per US dollar on August 7, the same as on July 31.
Kenya’s apex bank, the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK), quoted the shilling at 129.2395 on Tuesday August 12.
Against other major currencies, the shilling traded at:
- Sterling Pound – Ksh173.6203
- Euro – Ksh150. 2280
- South African Rand – 7.2835
- Japanese Yen (100 units) – Ksh87.1297
Against regional currencies, the shilling exchanged at:
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- Ugandan Shilling – Ksh27.5690
- Tanzanian Shilling – Ksh19.4600
- Rwandan Franc – Ksh11.2004
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