Profits up for Kenya’s Barclays

by Richard Kilner

Story link: Profits up for Kenya’s Barclays

Today Kenya’s Barclays Bank has reported a rise in profits, before tax, of 9.4% to 7.079bn shillings, worth around US$100m.

Managing director Adan Mohamed has expressed his pleasure at the performance of the bank, which has a majority stake held by Barclays Bank of the UK, describing that the profits rise comes amidst investments.

The bank’s costs have risen sharply, up 43%, as it expands rapidly.

Its staff numbers are up to 7,000 compared to just 2,000 this time last year, and it now has 107 branches.

Customer deposits have risen by 16%, and operating income by 25%.

However, the future is not unremittingly bright. Kenya’s political crisis, caused by the post-election violence and disputes over legitimacy, have raised concerns about the near future.

No losses have been incurred by the bank because of the crisis, although it is now re-evaluating its plans for the future to take into account the difficult situation.