Market challenges have not slowed us down—Joshua Oigara
In a year marked by high inflation, climate change risks, and a weakening Kenyan Shilling, Stanbic Bank has defied the
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Stanbic Bank
February private sector activity rises highest in over a year
Kenya’s private sector experienced a significant uptick in growth in February, buoyed by several key factors that propelled business activity
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Bankers caught in the domino effect of the falling shilling
Kenyan banks find themselves in a tough spot, akin to a deer ensnared in the piercing glow of headlights. They are burdened by substantial amounts of government debt and defaulted government supplier debt. To compound matters, their ventures into foreign exchange have become a costly gamble, with a staggering 23.8 percent surge in expenses triggered by the falling Kenyan shilling.. In psychology, it is recognized that, like animals, humans tend to freeze in response to acute stress, an instinct aimed at enhancing risk assessment and decision-making abilities. However, this instinct can lead to paralysis, leaving individuals unsure of how to proceed. Kenyan lenders are facing…
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Black Friday deals end 14 months of price hikes
If we are to believe the large billboards advertising goods at half price ahead of Black Friday, Kenyan businesses will cut product prices for the first time this year, having consistently raised prices every month due to increasing input costs and passing on new taxes to consumers. According to the Stanbic Bank Purchasing Managers Index, companies have been hiking prices each month, reaching a 14-month high in August before beginning to taper down ahead of the Black Friday shopping spree. For over a year now, prices of consumer goods have been soaring, forcing families to budget with their dwindling incomes and cut back on discretionary spending…
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When taxes don’t make business sense
With a scheduled touchdown of 12 midnight at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi, I knew I will have problems finding my way to Ndenderu, Kiambu County, in the dead of the night. So upon getting that “Karibu nyumbani” alert from Safaricom, and going through the arrival immigration checks by tired-looking officers, I stepped out on the cold tarmac to get a taxi home. “Boss, unaelekea wapi?,” a trio of taxi drivers, keen to secure a late-night deal, shove each other mobbing me at the arrivals section. Years of technological advances and the rise of digital ride hailing applications have done little to change…
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