Kenya Commercial Bank, Kenya’s major bank in terms of assets volume, said it was interested in acquiring majority stake in Chase Bank of Kenya which is currently under receivership. Details regarding the offer will be released after April 27, 2016, when the bank is to re-open.

On April 7, 2016, Central Bank of Kenya placed Chase Band (11th bank in Kenya) under receivership after its managing director and board’s president resigned and were arrested by the police.

An audit report criticized the bank’s accounts for 2015. Kenya Commercial Bank will as a result proceed to verifications and give final decision regarding offer’s finalization.

By acquiring Chase Bank, Kenya Commercial Bank will enter the small and medium enterprises segment. Chase Bank also holds a licence to operate as an Islamic bank, and provide microfinance as well as minor insurance services. Apart from KCB, 6 Kenyan and two foreign institutions also manifested their interest in acquiring shares in Chase Bank.

Due to the current crisis that Kenya’s banking sector experiences, analysts like Cytonn Investment suggested that an exit could be possible through banks’ consolidation.

With a population of 44 million people, Kenya has 40 banks while Nigeria has only 20 despite its massive population of 180 million people and a GDP of $496 billion.

Idriss Linge