As part of their move to gain direct control of the Nairobi-based financial services holding NCBA Group, the family of the late Kenyan banker Philip Ndegwa has successfully transferred its stake in the company to First Chartered Securities, the family’s investment vehicle.
The arrangement, which marks the latest restructuring of the Ndegwa family’s interest in the banking sector, saw their stake in NCBA Group rise by 12.7 million shares to 12.52 percent.
This comes nearly three years after NCBA Group was formed through the merger of NIC Bank Group, led by the Ndegwa family, and Commercial Bank of Africa Group, led by the wealthy Kenyatta family, resulting in Kenya’s third-largest bank.
At the end of 2021, all 70.9 million NCBA shares held by ICEA Lion Asset Management Limited were transferred to First Chartered Securities.
The share-transfer agreement was also strengthened by an additional purchase, which increased the family’s direct interest in First Chartered Securities to 12.52 percent, or 206.29 million shares. From their stake, the Ndegwa family received a total dividend of Ksh464.15 million ($4 million).
NCBA Group is a Nairobi-based financial services conglomerate that operates as a non-operating holding through its vast network of subsidiaries in Tanzania, Rwanda, Uganda and Cote d’Ivoire.
Under the leadership of Philip Ndegwa’s sons, James and Andrew, the group has grown into one of the leading financial services groups in East Africa. James and Andrew Ndegwa own 4.23- and 4.3-percent stake in NCBA Group, respectively.
To drive the bank’s strategic positioning as a leader in the financial services industry, management has announced plans to open more branches in Kenya and other markets as it seeks to grow deposits and its retail client base.
Due to strong performance from its banking, unit trust and investment banking operations, the group’s full-year net profit more than doubled from Ksh4.6 billion ($40.1 million) in 2020 to Ksh10.2 billion ($88.9 million) at the end of 2021.
NCBA Group reported a profit after tax of Ksh3.41 billion ($29.4 million) for the quarter ending March 31, a 20-percent increase over the Ksh2.84 billion ($24.5 million) reported during the same period in 2021.
