(NAIROBI, KENYA) – Banks and Safaricom accounted for 80.2 % of all dividends paid by companies listed on the Nairobi Securities Exchange in the last full financial year, confirming their place as the top choice for investors seeking steady income from equities.
The 12 listed banks and the telecoms operator paid a combined KES197.2 billion ($1.53 billion / GBP1.20 billion) to shareholders for the year, out of total NSE dividends of KES245.9 billion ($1.90 billion / GBP1.50 billion).
The other 21 companies that paid dividends for the year distributed a combined KES48.7 billion ($376.9 million / GBP297.1 million), just over half of the KES80 billion ($619.1 million / GBP488.1 million) paid out by Safaricom alone.
East African Breweries Plc, BAT Kenya and KenGen had the largest payouts outside banks and Safaricom, at KES10.04 billion ($77.7 million / GBP61.3 million), KES7 billion ($54.2 million / GBP42.7 million) and KES4.94 billion ($38.2 million / GBP30.1 million) respectively.
The latest full year cash distribution was also lifted by a one off interim dividend of KES13 billion ($100.6 million / GBP79.3 million), or KES8 per share, paid by cross listed Ugandan electricity utility Umeme in July 2025.
Dividends represent a realised return booked by investors from their holdings, adding to the paper gains they have made over the last three years in the NSE’s bull run. These capital gains can only be earned when an investor sells shares, which would then end the dividend income stream.
This year, the NSE has added 42 % or KES1.23 trillion ($9.52 billion / GBP7.51 billion) in market capitalisation, a measure of investor wealth, to KES4.18 trillion ($32.35 billion / GBP25.51 billion).
As with dividends, Safaricom and the banks have driven the market’s valuation, adding a combined KES916 billion ($7.09 billion / GBP5.59 billion) in market value, equal to 74 % of the bourse’s total gain this year. The banking sector’s gain includes KES49 billion ($379.2 million / GBP299.1 million) in new wealth from the listing of Family Bank in June.
The rally in blue chip share prices has been driven partly by their consistent dividend payment record over the years, which has kept demand for their stocks high even when other parts of the market have fallen.
Dividend payments by listed companies have also become an important source of liquid cash for individuals and businesses in an economy still dealing with costly credit and flat payslips.
Because of their large profits, banks and Safaricom pay the largest total dividends, alongside selected blue chips such as EABL and BAT Kenya.
Safaricom made the largest distribution on the NSE in the most recent financial year at KES80 billion ($619.1 million / GBP488.1 million), after raising its dividend per share to KES2 from KES1.20.
For the year ending March 2026, the company paid an interim dividend of KES0.85 per share and a final dividend of KES1.15 per share. The payments were made in April and September 2026.
It raised its payout after posting a 37 % jump in net profit to KES95.6 billion ($739.9 million / GBP583.3 million) for the period, the highest on the NSE, having kept its policy of distributing 80 % of net profit to shareholders.
Among the banks, the largest payouts in absolute terms came from KCB Group and Equity Group at KES22.5 billion ($174.1 million / GBP137.3 million) and KES21.7 billion ($167.9 million / GBP132.4 million) respectively.
They were followed by Co operative Bank of Kenya at KES14.7 billion ($113.8 million / GBP89.7 million), Standard Chartered Bank Kenya and NCBA Group at KES11.7 billion ($90.5 million / GBP71.4 million) each, and Absa Bank Kenya at KES11.1 billion ($85.9 million / GBP67.7 million).
Others were Stanbic Holdings at KES8.8 billion ($68.1 million / GBP53.7 million), I&M Group at KES6.5 billion ($50.3 million / GBP39.7 million), BK Group at KES3.6 billion ($27.9 million / GBP22 million) and DTB at KES2.5 billion ($19.3 million / GBP15.3 million).
Five of the banks have also announced interim dividends for the first half of 2026, most of them higher than last year. This signals that full year payouts will rise further and cement the sector’s dominance, alongside Safaricom, in rewarding shareholders.
KCB will pay KES9.64 billion ($74.6 million / GBP58.8 million) in interim dividend on 10th November at KES3 per share, up from KES2 per share in 2025. The increase followed a 14.2 % rise in net profit to KES36 billion ($278.6 million / GBP219.6 million) for the six months to June 2026.
In 2025, the bank also paid a special dividend of KES2 per unit from the proceeds of the sale of National Bank of Kenya to Nigerian lender Access Bank Plc.
NCBA paid KES6.18 billion ($47.8 million / GBP37.7 million) on 8th September after raising its interim dividend for the half year to June to KES3.75 per share from KES2.50 a year earlier. Stanbic and Absa will make their payouts on 15th September and 15th October.
Stanbic will distribute KES1.5 billion ($11.6 million / GBP9.15 million) after cutting its interim dividend per share to KES1.64 from KES3.80, while Absa is paying KES2.72 billion ($21 million / GBP16.6 million) after raising its dividend per share to KES0.50 from KES0.20 last year.
Even as shareholders of these companies enjoy higher returns, the growing ownership of top firms by foreign investors means a larger share of dividends is being sent out of the country and the local economy.
In June, South African company Vodacom Group tightened its grip on Safaricom by buying an additional 15 % stake from the Kenyan government for KES204 billion ($1.58 billion / GBP1.24 billion), taking its controlling stake to 55 %.
South Africa’s Nedbank is buying a 66 % stake in NCBA for about KES110 billion ($851.2 million / GBP671.4 million), in a deal expected to close early in the fourth quarter of the year.
Absa Group has raised its stake in the Kenyan unit from 68.5 % to 71.99 % for KES6.5 billion ($50.3 million / GBP39.7 million) through a tender offer priced at KES34.50 per share.
The South African bank had bid for an additional 16.5 % stake in its Kenyan unit at a cost of KES30.9 billion ($239.1 million / GBP188.6 million), but the offer was undersubscribed after the gap between the market price and the tender price narrowed during the sale period.