Category: East Africa
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Treasury’s Sh20bn KQ loan terms alarm MPs
Kenyan taxpayers are facing the prospect of paying a Sh20 billion ($200 million) debt next year when a government-backed short-term loan advanced to national carrier Kenya Airways matures. Members of Parliament have flagged the loan as a big risk to the stability of public finances as it has to be fully repaid in one lump…
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Govt planning law to guide counties on revenue collection
The government is developing a national legislation to guide counties on revenue collection. This follows complaints that some devolved units had come up with prohibitive taxes that have scared away investors. The guide is meant to check on the unnecessary levies that are way above what the business community can afford and remain in business.…
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Interest rate caps erode bank valuations in buyouts
The capping of interest rates has hurt bank deals, with more lenders now being acquired at prices lower than their book value to reflect relatively weaker earnings outlook. Habib Bank, which is set to be fully acquired by DTB Bank, is the latest lender to be taken over at a price equivalent to 0.77 times…
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Uganda says seeking $500 mn loan from China for roads
Uganda says it has asked China for a $500 million loan to help build almost 600 km (360 miles) of roads in the country’s oil-rich west, amid criticism over heavy borrowing that has ballooned the country’s debt. Uganda has discovered an estimated 6.5 billion barrels of crude reserves on its Albertine rift basin along the…
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Kenya Power says 1m customers on prepaid meters are not paying
Electricity distributor Kenya Power says 940,668 customers connected to the national grid have not loaded their meters for months. This makes them “zero vend” customers, which refers to prepaid meters installed but have not yet purchased any tokens. Kenya Power acting managing director Ken Tarus on Monday attributed the idle prepaid meters to low consumption…
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Treasury pushes Kenya into more debt with fresh Sh82 billion loan
The Treasury has taken yet another expensive short-term loan from a group of international banks, pushing Kenya further into debt. Reuters news agency reported that the $800 million (Sh82 billion) syndicated loan deal was signed last Thursday with a consortium of four banks including StanChart, Standard Bank, Citi and Rand Merchant Bank — and is…
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Kenya:Inflation jump threat after maize flour price rebounds
Consumer price of flour has rebounded to Sh130 for a two-kilogramme packet after easing last month as food cost threatens to take inflation to a new short-term high. This comes as millers warn that the price will continue to rise in the coming days as maize supply in the market gets tighter. Inflation in January…
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Kenya:Parliament seeks stiff fines for rogue banks
Parliament is seeking punitive fines for bank executives who fail to disclose suspicious transactions in a fresh bid to block the flow of stolen taxpayers’ cash. Financial institutions are required to report all transactions above $10,000 (Sh1,030,000) to The Financial Reporting Centre (FRC), the state agency that tracks proceeds of crime, but many do not…
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Uber Kenya hikes fare by 20 percent after strikes
The Kenyan unit of U.S. ride-hailing firm Uber Technologies Inc has increased its fare by 20 percent, a move that follows protests and strikes by Uber drivers who said a lower fare made their service uneconomical. Uber, which operates in several African countries, cut its fare in Kenya to 35 shillings ($0.3400) per kilometre last…
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Kenya:Only removal of rates cap can unlock credit, banks tell Uhuru
Banks have said only removal of the interest rates cap could release credit flow to the private sector, responding to President Uhuru Kenyatta’s announcement in Wednesday’s State of the Nation address. President Kenyatta said in his address in Parliament that he was concerned about reduced lending since interest rate controls took effect in September 2016.…