Will CBK cut interest rates this week?

Hello 👋 

It's Brian from The Kenyan Wall Street.

Here are our lead stories for the newsletter today:

🏦 Bankers Push for Further Rate Cuts by the Central Bank

Bankers have urged the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) to further cut its benchmark rate at its final Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting of the year on 5th December 2024. Industry lobby group Kenya Bankers Association (KBA) argues that a further rate cut would provide a stronger signal to the market for lending rates to decline. With inflation anchored within the lower target and the exchange rate maintaining medium term stability, the industry lobby holds that a significant rate cut would enhance economic activity through recovery in the private sector credit growth. What global developments are likely to shape the MPC’s decision this week…

📡 Safaricom Ethiopia Decries ‘Unfair Competition’

Top executives of Safaricom Ethiopia told Ethiopian law makers over a week ago that they were unhappy about ‘monopolistic’ practices of their competitor, Ethio Telecom; requesting the government to equalize access to open platforms. According to an The Reporter, executives of the Kenya-affiliated telco lamented that Ethio Telecom users experienced higher tariffs and extra costs when making phone calls to subscribers of the Safaricom network. This is in contrast to Safaricom’s fixed charge for all networks, a reality that makes it immensely harder for new customers to onboard their network. But is this a case of what is good for the goose is good for the gander?

💸 Limiting Financial Services Inspire Zambian Fintech eShandi into East Africa-Interview

Leading Zambian Fintech eShandi has announced expansion to Kenyan market as well as South Africa and Zimbabwe-with the aim of bringing financial services to the almost seven million Kenyans who still do not have a bank account, as well as the SMEs which still continue to struggle to access financial services. Chilufya Mutale-Mwila, eShandi’s co-founder recently spoke with Fred Obura of The Kenyan Wall Street on the opportunities and challenges in this new adventure.

💱 Kenyan Shilling Weakens to 4-Month Low on Increased Dollar Demand

The Kenyan Shilling has weakened to a near 4-month low against the US dollar as demand for the foreign currency increased in the past week. The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) quoted the shilling at 129.6754 on Friday last week, a 0.1% decrease from 129.5794 quoted a week earlier as dollar demand outweighed its supply in the domestic market. The shilling has depreciated by 0.4% since President Trump’s re-election on 6th November, following a dollar rebound globally. How stable is the Kenyan Shilling?

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