KENYA – Kellen Kariuki has been appointed as the new Chairperson of the Board of directors of Standard Chartered Bank Kenya, following the retirement of Engineer Patrick Obath.

Her appointment took effect from May 31, 2021.

Prior to her appointment to chair the board, she served as an independent non-executive director of the board since her appointment on 10th February 2021.

Kellen has rich experience in the banking and finance industry having served in various top leadership roles at Citi Bank North America for more than 20 years.

She was the first CEO and Managing Trustee of the Unclaimed Financial Assets Authority of Kenya (UFAA).

Currently, Kellen is the Managing Director of Feruzi Holdings Limited, a consulting firm engaged in financial advisory, real estate, and agribusiness.

She is also a non-executive director at AMREF Health Africa International and a Board Member of the Strathmore University Foundation.

Kellen Kariuki has a Master of Science in International Human Resource Management from Cranfield University in the UK.

In addition, she holds an MBA in Strategic Management and a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting from USIU-Africa.

During the announcement, the board of Standard Chartered Bank Kenya said, “Kellen’s wealth of experience and expertise will contribute greatly towards accelerating the achievement of the Company’s strategy”.

The board also congratulated her on her appointment.

The lender has reported a 20 percent growth in earnings for the first three months to March 31, 2021, on a steady income as the economy slightly rebounded from the Covid-19 impact.

Quarter 1 results show the lender’s net profit rose to US$22.2 million compared to US$18.5 million over a similar period in 2020.

The growth which rose to the pre-Covid-19 levels of 2019 is also attributed to the slashing of operational costs.

The lender’s non-interest-related expenses fell by 7.5 percent in the period to US$34.3 million driven by the completion of a staff rationalization exercise and lower loan loss provisions.

While operating expenses dropped,  income rose marginally by 1.4 percent to US$65.7 million. 

Total non-interest funded income grew to US$23 million from US$20.4 million, compensating an 8.2 percent drop in total interest income to US#51.9 million.

Despite the Nairobi Securities Exchange-listed lender reporting a drop in loan loss provision, its non-performing loan rose to  11.5 percent as borrowers struggled to repay primarily due to Covid-19 economic hurdles.

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