In the first six months of 2019, the bank witnessed its profits rise from Sh145.7 million registered in the same period last year/FILE
NAIROBI, Kenya, Aug 20- Family Bank has posted Sh520.9 Million in Profit Before Tax in the first six months of 2019, compared to Sh145.7 Million posted during a similar period in 2018.
According to the company, the growth is attributable to increased customer deposits and growth in interest from higher loan uptake.
The company’s net interest margin grew by 13 per cent to hit Sh2.29 Billion, boosted by the expansion of the loan book and a 16 per cent decrease in interest expense.
The loan book was up to Sh46.7 billion fromSh2.9 billion recorded in the same period last year.
Non-interest income also grew by 5 per cent to Sh1.31 Billion, driven by foreign exchange trading income and other fees and commissions.
Family Bank Chairman Wilfred Kiboro said the group’s performance was also driven by digital banking.
“We have continued on an upward growth trajectory thanks to increased lending especially on our digital platform PesaPap,” he said.
Key balance sheet figures also grew with the Bank’s deposit book growing by 13 per cent to hit Sh54 Billion at the end of June 2019, up from Sh47 Billion in June in 2018.
The Bank’s liquidity remains stable at 12.9 per cent above the minimum statutory ratio of 20 per cent.
The announcement of the results come at a time where Financial Sector Deepening (FSD) survey, reveals that 35 percent of Kenyans do not save in banks due to lack of finances, while 15.5 percent of individuals lack a regular income to engage in saving.
It also discovered that traditional accounts declined from 31.7 percent in 2016 to 29.6 percent in 2019, mobile banking accounts usage increased to 25.3 percent in 2019 from 17.5 percent in 2016.
It further indicates that Growth in mobile banking account usage is mainly driven by young people below the age of 35 years.
Earlier this month, Equity Bank said mobile loans worth Sh20 billion were disbursed virtually through its mobile virtual network – Equitel.
KCB’s mobile loans rose to Sh103 billion during the period under review from Sh18.8 billion in the same period last year.
