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Ethiopia’s central bank will target individual lenders with additional reserve requirements based on loan-to-deposit ratios, replacing a sector-wide credit cap removed after one year.
Kenya has overhauled how it charges banks for operating licences, replacing a 32-year-old flat-fee model with a new structure tied to each institution’s gross annual revenue
Awash, Abay, Bunna, and Addis Bank are registering millions of shares with Ethiopia’s ECMA, as the Ethiopian Securities Exchange moves from regulatory setup to active capital formation.
China’s central bank has authorised Standard Bank to clear yuan payments across 19 African countries, making it the first African lender with direct access to China’s domestic payment system.
Absa, Nedbank, and Standard Bank are all pursuing Kenyan expansion simultaneously, marking the country as the continent’s most strategically important banking growth market.
Ecobank is collaborating with Bank of China to introduce direct local currency to yuan settlement services by 2026, aiming to streamline payments for African SMEs engaged in trade with China.
The shift marks a potential turning point in the management of the naira after years of heavy central bank involvement to stabilise the currency amid chronic dollar shortages.
There’s a fact in Kenyan banking that often gets overlooked: most Kenyans repay their loans. Four out of five, in fact. The problem isn’t that Kenyans don’t pay. It’s that the share that doesn’t has been quietly rising
The Cairo-based lender said on Thursday that it successfully issued Samurai and Panda bonds across Japan and China during the year, underscoring its continued access to global capital.
Net income across microfinance institutions (MFIs) rose to $31 million (ETB 3.7 billion), a 22.6% increase from $25.1 million (ETB 3 billion) a year earlier, according to central data reviewed by Finance In Africa.
The Central Bank of Nigeria confirmed that banks successfully completed a significant recapitalisation drive by the March 31, 2026 deadline, raising $3.4 billion.
Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc (GTCO) reported a pre-tax profit of $890 million for the year ending December 31, 2025, despite a decline in profit after tax due to non-recurrence of prior year gains and higher taxes.
FirstRand Group has announced a major restructuring of its First National Bank (FNB) division to enhance client services amid rising product commoditisation.
Afreximbank has successfully closed its largest-ever syndicated borrowing, raising $2 billion through a dual-tranche loan facility. Despite recent rating challenges from Fitch, the deal attracted significant global interest…
New data from the National Bank of Ethiopia’s (NBE) third financial stability report shows state-owned CBE’s market share rising across key balance sheet indicators in the year to June 30, 2025, even as medium and small banks lose ground.
Standard Bank Group, Africa’s largest lender, forecasts an 8-12% compound annual growth in headline earnings per share from 2026 to 2028, alongside revenue growth of 7-10%.
IM Group PLC reported a 21.9% increase in profit after tax, reaching $119 million for the 2024 fiscal year, driven by net interest income growth. However, the lender faced a 7.8% contraction in its loan portfolio and subdued credit demand amid Kenya’s economic challenges.
Revenue rose 5% to $7.07 billion (R115.7 billion), while pre-provision profit increased 4% to $3.27 billion (R53.5 billion). Credit impairments declined 6% to $820 million (R13.4 billion), reducing the credit loss ratio (CLR) to 88 basis points from 103 basis points.
Total revenue declined 3.1% year-on-year to $298.5 million (KShs 38.51 billion), driven by reductions in both net interest income and non-interest income. This pressure reflects a normalizing interest rate environment in Kenya following earlier high rates.
The lender’s total assets expanded to $216.5 billion (R3.6 trillion) from $196.0 billion (R3.26 trillion) a year earlier, reflecting robust balance sheet growth across both domestic and regional operations.
