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KCB doubles final dividend as profit hits Sh66.8bn
KCB Group chief executive Paul Russo addresses investors during the release of the lender’s full-year 2025 financial results in Nairobi on March 11, 2026.
Photo credit: Francis Nderitu | Nation Media Group
KCB Group has doubled its final dividend to Sh3 per share from Sh1.50 previously after posting an 11.2 percent rise in net profit for the year ended December 31, 2025.
The higher payout raises the bank’s total dividend per share to Sh7 for the period after the lender paid an enhanced interim dividend of Sh4 per share in mid-2025 following proceeds from the sale of National Bank of Kenya (NBK).
The total dividend is 133 percent higher than in 2024 and represents a payout ratio of 33 percent for the year.
The final dividend will be payable to shareholders on KCB’s books as of April 2, 2026. The bank did not immediately disclose the payment date.
The lender’s total payout to shareholders for the year will rise to Sh9.64 billion from Sh4.82 billion in the prior year.
KCB’s profit after tax rose to Sh66.8 billion from Sh60 billion in December 2024, largely supported by higher operating income, which increased by 4.1 percent to Sh213.7 billion from Sh204.8 billion previously.
Income growth
The higher operating income was driven by a 7.7 percent rise in net interest income, which represents revenue from lending activities, to Sh148 billion from Sh137.3 billion previously.
Non-funded income fell slightly by 2.62 percent to Sh65.7 billion, dragged down by foreign exchange depreciation in subsidiaries such as the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The Group’s non-interest costs remained largely flat, falling marginally by 0.02 percent to Sh122.87 billion. This was supported by lower provisions as gross non-performing loans declined to Sh211.8 billion from Sh225.6 billion previously.
KCB attributed the rise in profitability to gains from the divestiture of NBK and increased lending during the year, supported by lower interest rates.
“There is an element of the divestiture of the National Bank of Kenya (NBK), but we have also leveraged our Group capabilities and digitisation to deliver best efficiencies,” said KCB Group chief finance officer Lawrence Kimathi.
“We managed our lending margins very well and that delivered for us from a net interest income perspective.”
