Co-operative Bank of Kenya Plc grew profit before tax by 17.3 percent to Kshs 23.1 billion in the six months to June 2026, up from Kshs 19.7 billion a year earlier.
Profit after tax climbed 28.0 percent to Kshs 18.0 billion from Kshs 14.1 billion in H1 2025. The Group’s board approved the unaudited results on August 12, 2026.
“This is the best ever half year performance for the Group, and the strong performance underscores the significant gains made under the 2025 to 2029 Good to Great strategy and the Soaring Eagle transformation agenda,” Group Managing Director and CEO Dr Gideon Muriuki said in the results statement.
Key Half Year Numbers
| Metric | H1 2026 | Change YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Profit before tax | Kshs 23.1 billion | Up 17.3% |
| Profit after tax | Kshs 18.0 billion | Up 28.0% |
| Net interest income | Kshs 33.2 billion | Up 13.0% |
| Operating income | Kshs 48.9 billion | Up 12.5% |
| Total assets | Kshs 869.5 billion | Up 7.1% |
| Net loans and advances | Kshs 462.2 billion | Up 18.1% |
| Total deposits | Kshs 623.2 billion | Up 11.2% |
| Government securities | Kshs 271.6 billion | Up 7.0% |
| Shareholders funds | Kshs 171.0 billion | Up 9.4% |
| Borrowed funds | Kshs 58.2 billion | Down 11.4% |
| Return on average equity | 22.0% | Up from 18.9%* |
| Return on average assets | 4.3% | Up from 3.7% |
*H1 2025 ROAE figure was not stated in the release. Percentage point change shown for other metrics where the prior year base was disclosed.
Bad Loans Fall As Asset Quality Improves
The Group tightened its credit book alongside growing it. The non performing loan ratio improved to 13.9 percent from 17.2 percent a year earlier, while IFRS provisioning coverage rose to 80.7 percent from 69.9 percent. Cost of risk eased to 1.8 percent from 2.4 percent. Muriuki attributed the gains to proactive credit management, closer customer engagement and continuous portfolio monitoring.
Operating expenses rose 9.2 percent, pushing the cost to income ratio before provisions to 46.0 percent. The Group held a liquidity ratio of 57.3 percent and total capital to risk weighted assets of 22.9 percent, both above regulatory minimums.
Digital Channels Carry The Transaction Load
More than 90 percent of customer transactions now run through alternative delivery channels rather than branch tellers. The bank’s network includes 16,105 Co-op Kwa Jirani agents, 609 ATMs and cash deposit machines, and a 24 hour contact centre. Agency banking deposits grew 8.7 percent to Kshs 92.5 billion from Kshs 85.1 billion in H1 2025.
Physical reach expanded too. The Group now operates 223 branches across Kenya, South Sudan and Kingdom Bank, backed by 619 SACCO front offices that plug into the wider cooperative ecosystem. Diaspora banking customers passed 23,000, and staff numbers grew to 6,591, adding 741 jobs since H1 2025.
MSME Lending And Youth Banking Expand
E-Credit disbursements reached Kshs 40.4 billion in H1 2026, taking cumulative disbursements since the platform launched past Kshs 561.2 billion. Cumulative MCo-op Cash loan customers grew to 15.6 million. The bank onboarded 268,604 MSMEs onto tailored packages during the period and supported 71,298 more through training and capacity building. MSMEs now account for 16.5 percent of the loan book and 23.1 percent of customer deposits.
The Group created a Youth Financial Services Division during the period, aiming to serve over 10 million youth customers over the medium term. By H1 2026 it had disbursed Kshs 27.0 billion to more than 500,000 young entrepreneurs and enrolled over 150,000 young people in financial literacy programmes. Youth assets under management through the Co-op Bank App passed Kshs 900.0 million.
Subsidiaries Add To Group Earnings
Every subsidiary in the Group posted higher profit before tax than a year earlier.
| Subsidiary | PBT H1 2026 | PBT H1 2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kingdom Bank Ltd | Kshs 873.0 million | Kshs 491.1 million | Up 77.8% |
| Co-op Bancassurance Intermediary Ltd | Kshs 812.7 million | Not disclosed | — |
| Co-optrust Investment Services Ltd | Kshs 640.5 million | Kshs 360.8 million | Up 77.5% |
| Co-op Bank of South Sudan Ltd | Kshs 224.0 million | Kshs 56.9 million | Up 293.7% |
| Kingdom Securities Ltd | Kshs 77.9 million | Kshs 63.2 million | Up 23.3% |
Co-optrust, the Group’s fund management arm, grew funds under management to Kshs 505.2 billion. Kingdom Bank is migrating onto the Finacle core banking system already live at Co-op Bank Kenya and Co-op Bank South Sudan, a move meant to support faster product rollout across the Group.
Sustainability Push And Industry Recognition
The bank continued aligning its climate risk framework to IFRS S1 and S2 reporting standards and the Kenya Green Finance Taxonomy. Through the Co-op Bank Foundation, 12,601 students have benefited from its scholarship programme to date, and the Foundation funded renovations at Kenyatta National Hospital’s orthopaedic wards that added roughly 150 beds of inpatient capacity. The bank also supported 3,960 cooperative advisory mandates during the half year.
The results period brought a run of industry recognition. Euromoney named Co-op Bank Kenya’s Best Retail Bank and Best Digital Bank for 2026. Global Finance named it Best Bank in Kenya, the African Banker Awards named it SME Bank of the Year, and Statista ranked it among Africa’s Fastest Growing Companies. CFI and the International Banker’s Africa and North Africa Banking Awards added further honours for digital inclusion and commercial banking.
What The Results Mean For The Rest Of 2026
Co-op Bank closes the half year with a larger loan book, cleaner asset quality and deeper digital reach than a year ago, built on a customer base the Group says now exceeds 10 million account holders.
Muriuki pointed to the bank’s roots in Africa’s largest cooperative movement, which counts 15 million members, as a structural advantage competitors cannot easily replicate. With loan growth, deposit mobilisation and subsidiary earnings all moving in the same direction, the Good to Great strategy now has a full half year of results to defend through year end.
