• Equity CEO mentioned Senate supports waiving share sale; but formal full law still pending.

• The 2022 law, plus the central bank rule, requires banks to cede stakes to local investors.

• The National Assembly passed the reform; Senate review and presidential assent awaited.

Equity Group Holdings CEO James Mwangi has expressed “confidence” that the lender’s Democratic Republic of Congo subsidiary, Equity BCDC, will not be forced to sell a 30 % stake to local investors, according to a news report from the Business Daily Africa. “We launched our petition to the Senate and the President, and the Senate yielded to our plea. That clause is being amended,” Mwangi told to the Kenyan media.

While the Senate leadership is understood to have signalled support, no formal exemption has yet been gazetted; the process still requires Senate plenary approval (expected on September 2025), and presidential assent. Law No. 22/069 of 27 December 2022, which governs the activities and control of credit institutions in the DRC, requires every bank to have at least four unrelated shareholders, each holding at least 15 % of the capital.

In addition, Congolese nationals must collectively own at least 45 % of the bank’s equity. These rules were part of broader efforts to liberalize sectors like banking, mining, and insurance, as outlined in reports on creating markets in the DRC. However, they posed challenges for foreign and even local banks, which mainly operate with majority or full ownership.

Both Equity Group and Kenya Commercial Bank Group, each controlling 85% of their DRC subsidiaries, would need to divest approximately 30% to meet requirements. The initial deadline for compliance was six months, but the central bank (BCC) extended this period to three years—until July 4, 2026—via Instruction No. 18. This extension was later criticized for exceeding regulatory authority.

In September 2024, National-Assembly deputy Olivier Katuala tabled a bill to amend Law 22/069. The draft reduces the minimum number of shareholders from four to two while retaining the BCC’s power to cap individual stakes. On 15 June 2025 the lower house adopted the bill; it is now awaiting Senate debate and promulgation by President Félix Tshisekedi.

Equity’s optimism comes amid strong first-half 2025 results for Equity BCDC. Profit after tax rose 22 % to US63.6million(KSh9.1billion), The loan book grew 13% to $1.92 billion (Kshs. 275.4 billion) from $1.71 billion (Kshs. 244.2 billion), and return on equity improved to 23.5 %. The DRC unit now contributes 27.5 % of group pre-tax profit, up from 1.7 % in 2016.

Idriss Linge