Kenya’s NCBA Bank is planning to merge 14 former NIC Bank and Commercial Bank of Africa (CBA) Bank branches, media reports said. The decision to merge branches comes after the conclusion of merging NIC Bank and CBA.
It is reported that seven of those 14 branches had been temporarily shut down on April 1 as a result of the pandemic. The Central Bank of Kenya has approved NCBA Bank’s rationalisation strategy.
NCBA Group managing director John Gachora, said in a statement, “The rationalisation has been made with careful consideration of customer impact, and will ensure a smooth transition of those affected. This plan is currently under review in light of Covid-19. We remain optimistic that once the economy begins to recover, we will roll out this expansion strategy.”
With this decision, NCBA Bank’s number of branches in Kenya will reduce to 68, media reports said.
More recently, NCBA Bank reported net profit growth by 20 percent to Sh1.63 billion in the first quarter of the year. Also, NCBA Bank and CBA Bank’s merged entity reported Sh1.29 billion in profits after tax during the same period, media reports said.
”The underlying trends of the income statement remained solid, with customer revenue growing, operating costs, on the other hand, remained stable compared to the last quarter of 2019. The Group continues to pursue integration efficiencies and synergies,’’ Gachora told the media.
The bank is reportedly taking capital conservation measures. Also, the board announced a dividend payout of Sh1.75 per ordinary share, media reports said.