CBK reveals Kenya’s biggest banks as 8 control 69.7% market share
Kenya’s biggest banks lost part of their combined share of the banking market in 2025 as medium-sized lenders expanded their position, according to new data from the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK). The eight banks classified by CBK as the large peer group accounted for 69.7 per cent of the banking sector’s market-share index at […]
According to data from Kenya's Central Bank of Kenya (CBK), the nation's largest eight banks collectively controlled 69.7 percent of the banking market at the end of December 2025, a slight decrease from 75.6 percent the previous year. Simultaneously, medium-sized banks expanded their share, rising from 16.7 percent to 23.2 percent.
The market-share index is calculated using a weighted formula considering total net assets, deposits, shareholders' funds, the number of deposit accounts, and loan accounts. The eight large banks were KCB Bank Kenya, Equity Bank Kenya, Co-operative Bank, NCBA Bank Kenya, Absa Bank Kenya, Stanbic Bank Kenya, I&M Bank, and Standard Chartered Bank Kenya.
KCB Bank led with a 17.3 percent market-size index, followed by Equity Bank at 11.8 percent and Co-operative Bank at 9.4 percent. The shift in market distribution is not solely due to customers or assets moving away from the largest banks but also reflects changes in the classification of CBK's peer groups. Standard Chartered moved from the large peer group to the medium group, while Sidian Bank moved from the small to the medium group.
Consequently, the medium peer group's market-share index grew from 16.7 percent in 2024 to 23.2 percent in 2025.
Written by urgent.news from People Daily Kenya's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
