How commercial banks led to rapid decline of shilling

During the month of October when the shilling depreciated steeply against the dollar in more than a decade, both banks and their clients net foreign currency holdings rose by a dramatic Sh45 billion ($449 million).

It was as if the banks and some of their customers who regularly buy forex were preparing for a battle of their lives in the hard currency market. As speculators and traders, it turned out that they were right because it was in October that the average value of the shilling, at Sh101.27 to the dollar, was the lowest since the local unit was floated in the mid 1990s.
Kenya had finally come face-to-face with speculators ranging from banks to their clients as they tried to build an arsenal for the battle, fearing the demand might become overwhelming in the weeks and months that followed.