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Former NBK finance chief blames board for Sh1bn fraud

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Former National Bank of Kenya chief finance officer Chris Chepkoit Kisire in a Nairobi Court on May 23, 2017. FILE PHOTO | PAUL WAWERU | NMG

Former National Bank of Kenya #ticker:NBK chief finance officer Chris Kisire has shifted blame to the board in an ongoing fraud case that is estimated to have cost the lender close to Sh1 billion.

Mr Kisire claims that the National Bank of Kenya (NBK) board developed and approved a deposit mobilisation scheme through which about Sh991.5 was paid to two consultancies; Edge Capital Consultancy and Advest Company Limited.

Mr Kisire was among eight former senior NBK managers who were in April punished by the capital markets regulator for falsifying books and stealing close to Sh1 billion.

The regulator, Capital Markets Authority (CMA), recommended their prosecution.

“The allegations made against the petitioner relate to steps, decisions and or actions which could and or were in fact taken by persons other than the petitioner; which persons were not subject to any control or direction of the petitioner i.e. the NBK board and the NBK Head of Treasury department,” he says.

“The first respondent therefore seeks to hold the petitioner directly liable for misdeeds of others, contrary to a long-standing legal principle that criminal culpability must be personal and direct, not inferred.”

He denies having given instructions to Edge Capital and Advest Company to pay any senior executives or having received any kickbacks from the two companies.

Mr Kisire says he was not involved in any way in sourcing the two companies when they were engaged to lead a deposit mobilisation programme.

Under the programme, the lender paid the two huge commissions for helping drive up money deposits by the lender’s clients, payments which CMA said was irregular.

READ: Ex-NBK executives banned and fined for theft of funds

Ex-NBK finance chief Chris Kisire quits Bamburi board