Author: Muindi

Quickmart PLC has raised the cornerstone share of its KSh15 billion initial public offering (IPO) from 13% to 48%, after the Capital Markets Authority (CMA) approved three more institutional investors. The CMA approved the revised allocation on 23 October. It cleared applications from the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office’s MOBILIST programme, RWC Asset Management and the US firm 337 Frontier. They join the International Finance Corporation (IFC), which had conditionally agreed to buy up to US$15 million, about KSh1.94 billion, of offer shares at launch. The cornerstone pool now holds an indicative 960 million shares worth KSh7.20 billion at…

Kenyan banks paid and collected KES 205.58 billion in taxes in 2025, the first time the sector’s Total Tax Contribution passed KES 200 billion, according to the Kenya Bankers Association (KBA) Total Tax Contribution Report 2025. The figure is 5.53% above the KES 194.81 billion recorded in 2024 and equals 8% of government receipts. The report is the seventh edition of the study. It covers the year to 31 December 2025 and was prepared with PwC Kenya. How the report measures bank taxes The study splits taxes into two groups. Taxes borne are costs that reduce a bank’s own profit,…

In the latest episode of Profit Point, CNN’s Victoria Rubadiri speaks with Peter Ndegwa, CEO of Safaricom, about the company’s transformation into a technology business, the evolution of M-PESA, and how artificial intelligence and connectivity can expand financial inclusion across Africa. Key takeaways M-PESA is expanding from money transfer into a full financial ecosystem: pay, save, invest and insure. AI and data are essential to fraud prevention across roughly 150 million transactions a day. Safaricom spends about $400 to $500 million a year on infrastructure in Kenya. The “one app” super app has launched in Kenya, using AI to personalise…

Safaricom PLC and GulfCap Investment Bank have put a money market fund inside M-Pesa that earns no interest. Ziidi Shari’ah launched on 6 October 2026, and it gives Kenyans who follow Islamic finance rules a place to save from the phone they already carry. How Ziidi Shari’ah works You can start with Sh100, add Sh10 at a time, and join through the My OneApp app or by dialling *334#. Deposits and withdrawals to M-Pesa cost nothing, and you can track daily profit and lock funds. The *334# menu works on any handset, so a basic phone is enough. The fund…

Family Bank has signed a Sh1.3 billion ($10 million) trade finance facility with the African Development Bank (AfDB). The money gives the lender foreign currency to back importers who buy raw materials, machinery and stock from abroad. What the facility pays for The facility arrives in foreign currency, and Family Bank will lend it to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and local corporates. It targets businesses in manufacturing, agriculture, healthcare and renewable energy, as well as women owned enterprises. The funding matters because an importer must pay a foreign supplier in dollars, often before the goods ship. A bank can…

Kenya’s private sector returned to growth in September. The Stanbic Bank Kenya Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) rose to 51.3 from 49.7 in August, back above the 50.0 line that separates expansion from contraction. The reading matches July and is the highest since January, according to the survey compiled by S&P Global and released on October 5. Output still fell for a seventh month. Customer demand lifted the index, not production. Orders, jobs and purchasing recover New orders rose for a fourth straight month, and the pace picked up from August. Firms credited market demand, customer referrals, marketing campaigns and cash…