According to the financials released on Wednesday, total operating income rose 22% to Kshs. 22.95 billion in the period compared to KShs.18.76 billion in Q1 2019. Net interest income was up 18% to KShs.15 billion from additional investments in Government securities and lending. Non funded income surged 31% to KShs.7.9 billion from KShs.6.1 billion, driven by digital banking, improved foreign exchange earnings and additional income from National Bank of Kenya, the newest subsidiary of KCB Group

The continued focus on driving digital transactions saw non-branch transactions rise 97% up from 94% in Q1 2019 mainly driven by mobile, internet, and agency banking. Non-Branch volumes increased by 31% (KShs.445 billion compared to KShs.340 billion) while branch decreased by 8% on channel migration initiatives.

On the cost side, operating expenses increased 22% to KShs.11.1 billion, from KShs.9.1 billion on the back of NBK acquisition, increased depreciation in line with IFRS 16, and annual staff salary increments effected in Q1.

The Group’s balance sheet remained strong, growing 31% from KShs.725.7 billion to KShs.947.1 billion, well within the range of the KShs.1 trillion targets by the end of 2022.

Customer deposits rose 34% to KShs.740.4 billion on the back of NBK acquisition and onboarding of new customers. Customers put in an additional KShs.53 billion into the Bank as deposits for the 3 months from December 2019. The loan book expanded to KShs.553.9 billion, a 19% growth from KShs.464.3 billion reported in Q1 2019.

Despite the challenging environment, the business continued to generate good returns for its shareholders. Shareholders’ funds closed the period at KShs.135.6 billion from KShs.119.5 billion in 2019, a 13% improvement. KCB Group Plc will hold it's 49th Annual General Meeting (AGM) for shareholders via electronic communication on Thursday, June 4, 2020, from 10.00 am in view of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and government guidelines on public gatherings.

In addition, according to the Q1 numbers, the Group maintained healthy buffers on its capital ratios over the minimum regulatory requirement. All banking subsidiaries met regulatory capital requirements with the exception of NBK which was below total capital requirement.

The Group has been injecting capital in a bid to improve its compliance and expected improved performance due to turn around strategies expected to bridge the deficit.

“We are taking all the necessary precautions to safeguard the safety and well-being of our customers, staff, and the general public in the wake of the pandemic. We expect our performance to be negatively impacted by the outbreak as the business has been disrupted in all our markets. The crisis has taken a toll on all segments of our customers, effectively suppressing demand for credit” said Mr. Oigara.

“We are recalibrating our business to focus more on digital banking and excellence in customer experience to give our clients the best service under the current difficult circumstances” he added.