Saccos raid bank customers

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Hello 👋 

Here is Brian from The Kenyan Wall Street.

Welcome to today's edition of our daily newsletter…

Our top stories today

High Interest Rates Drive Borrowers to SACCOs

Kenyan Saccos reaped from the high interest rates on loans by commercial banks to net more customers looking for cheaper loans. Commercial banks have shown reluctance in cutting their charges on loans despite a third consecutive reduction on the Central Bank Rate to 11.25 per cent, from the initial 12 per cent and 12.75 per cent in October and August, respectively. According to the 2024 FinAccess Household Survey, the overall SACCO usage improved from 9.6 percent to 11.7 percent, as more individual households joined saccos which offered loans at a relatively lower rate during the high interest rate period. Mobile channels (e.g., USSD, apps, pay bills, POS, and ATMs) emerged as the most preferred usage mode at 70.6 percent, surpassing traditional SACCO usage (branches and headquarters) at 66.1 percent. Read more to see how saccos served Kenyans' financial needs

KRA July-Nov Revenue Jumps 4.3% to Ksh1 Trillion

The Kenya Revenue Authority’s (KRA) revenue for the last five months has hit Kshs 1.005 trillion, marking a 4.3 per cent growth compared to Kshs 963.746 Billion collected in the same period last year.

🔺Customs recorded an above Kshs 70 Billion-mark monthly collection in the last 4 months (August – November 2024/25).

🔺Cumulative July – November 2024 Customs revenue collections amounted to Kshs 359.571 Billion, a growth of 5.9% over Kshs 339.678 Billion realized in the same period of FY 2023/24.

🔺Domestic taxes amounted to Kshs 643.790 Billion in July – November 2024, translating to a revenue growth of 3.5 per cent over Kshs 621.984 Billion realized in July – November 2023.

Kenyan Exports to Rwanda Overtake Tanzania’s 

The value of Kenyan exports to Rwanda grew by over 240% from US$35.56 million in September to US$121.4 million in October, according to the new statistics from Kigali. On the flip side, Tanzania exported goods worth US$57.38 million in October, slumping by 39% from US$94.13 million in September. Most of the goods imported by Kigali in October came from China, valued at US$125.77 million, a 13% increase from the September figures. Kenya is now the second largest importer of goods in Rwanda, recording a 360% growth in the value of imports in October this year compared to October last year. How did Rwanda's balance of trade look like…

Court Reinstates KSh 1.3bn Compensation for Lead Poisoning Victims

The Supreme Court upheld the verdict by the Environment and Land Court (ELC) awarding KShs 1.3 billion to residents of Owino Uhuru village in Changamwe, as damages for lead poisoning. The Friday morning ruling overturned the decision by the Court of Appeal delivered last year and also reinstated Kshs 700 million to the Center for Justice Governance and Environmental Action to restore the environment. The appeal to the Supreme Court was filed by the Export Processing Zone Authority (EPZA) and the victims of the Metal Refinery (EPZ) limited, which was accused of polluting the environment with lead residues from 2006. The Court of Appeal directed NEMA to identify the extent of contamination and pollution caused by the operations of the Metal Refinery at the Owino- Uhuru Settlement and restore its eco-system. More details on this court case…

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Video of the Day 

Jackson Kiplagat, Head of Conservation Programs at WWF Kenya, emphasizes the crucial role of finance in driving sustainable development.

Merci beaucoup!