Standard Chartered Bank has declared an interim dividend of KSH 6 per share following an increase of 37.1% in net profit in the third quarter of 2022 financial year.
Shareholders will receive their payment once the company closes its books in a date that will be announced soon.
“The directors are pleased to announce the payment of an interim dividend of Sh6 for every ordinary share. The board recognises the importance of dividends to shareholders and remains committed to sustainable shareholder returns,” Stanchart announced in a statement.
In its third quarter report, the company posted a profit of KSH8.7 billion, compared to a profit of KSH6.3 billion recorded in the same period last year. The company’s profits have been driven by reduction in costs of loans, which reduced significantly from KSH2 billion to KSH621 million.
Non-interest income also increased to KSH 8.7 billion, which is largely driven by foreign exchange revenue. Most of the big banks in the country have earned significant forex revenues this year due to volatilities in exchange rates as a result of the Russia-Ukraine war.
Interest expenses in the company also declined by 12.6%. However, gross loan defaults have risen during the review period from KSH 1 billion to KSH 24 billion.
Stanchart’s CEO Mr. Kariuki Ngari is optimistic that the bank will continue recording good performance in the future.
““The impact of the Russian invasion of Ukraine continues to cast a dark cloud on the global economy. We are optimistic that our economy is on the rebound now that the elections are well behind us. We look forward to playing our role of assisting both individuals and businesses on their growth agenda,” he said.