Stanbic Holdings Plc’s banking subsidiary, Stanbic Bank Kenya, has recorded a drop in earnings despite growth in interest income and a sharp rise in dividends in its half-year 2025 results
At the group level, Stanbic Holdings recorded a drop in profit after tax to KSh 6.54 billion, down from KSh 7.21 billion in H1 2024.Net interest income declined 5.8% to KSh 11.83 billion, while non-interest income rose marginally by 0.8% to KSh 7.62 billion.Operating expenses surged by 15.5% to KSh 9.39 billion, contributing to a rise in the cost-to-income ratio to 48.3% from 40.4%.
Profit before tax fell 14.2% to KSh 8.61 billion, and earnings per share declined 9.3% to 16.56.
Despite the weaker performance, the group more than doubled its interim dividend to KSh 3.80 per share, up from KSh 1.84.
| Metric | H1 2025 | H1 2024 | YoY Change (%) |
|---|---|---|---|
Stanbic Bank Kenya Performanace
The lender saw its non-interest income fall by 33% to KSh 5.07 billion, while operating expenses rose by nearly 8% to KSh 10.66 billion.
Profit before tax slid 15% to KSh 8.41 billion. This decline came despite a 14% growth in net interest income to KSh 13.99 billion, buoyed by higher yields on customer lending.
The bank’s total assets dropped 5% to KSh 464.81 billion, while customer deposits fell by 2.5% to KSh 346.85 billion.
Net loans and advances also declined by 2.2% to KSh 233 billion. Gross non-performing loans eased slightly by 1.8% to KSh 23.95 billion, suggesting marginal improvement in credit quality.
Notably, Stanbic Bank Kenya more than doubled its interim dividend per share to KSh 8.82, up from KSh 4.26 a year earlier. By contrast, Stanbic Holdings Plc declared a DPS of 1.84, reflecting its policy of retaining a portion of bank profits.
Stanbic Holding over the Decade
Over the past decade, Stanbic Holdings has steadily expanded its core banking metrics. Net interest income has risen from KSh 3.6 billion in H1 2013 to KSh 11.8 billion in H1 2025, more than tripling over the period. Profit after tax has also grown from KSh 2.2 billion to KSh 6.5 billion.
The group’s total assets surged from KSh 141 billion to KSh 474 billion, while customer deposits climbed from KSh 83.9 billion to KSh 350.4 billion. Loans and advances increased nearly fivefold to KSh 308.7 billion before dipping in the latest period. Equity has expanded nearly fourfold to KSh 74.3 billion.
Despite these gains, cost efficiency has remained a challenge, with the cost-to-income ratio fluctuating and currently standing at 48.3%. Recent years have also seen growing reliance on interest income, while non-interest income has remained volatile. Still, Stanbic has maintained solid capital buffers and gradually increased its dividend payout, culminating in the sharp H1 2025 increase.
While the latest half-year performance reflects profit pressure, the group’s fundamentals remain intact. The raised interim dividend signals confidence in future earnings stability and capital adequacy, even amid balance sheet contraction and income headwinds.