August 2019

21Aug

Statistics indicate more Kenyans now willing to save

According to industry figures, there has been enormous appetite for a pension which has seen the industry total pension funds under guaranteed arrangement grow from Ksh. 163 billion to 183.7 billion a growth rate of 12.7% despite the heavy withdrawals during the same period which was as a result of mergers & acquisition and closure of big stores like Nakumatt in 2018. It is projected that pension under this class will grow to 300 billion shillings by 2020...

August 21, 2019
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01Aug

Kenya. 3 Fintech firms admitted into CMA regulatory sandbox

Capital Markets Authority (CMA) has admitted three fintech firms into its regulatory sandbox, allowing them to live test innovative solutions with the capacity to deepen and enhance the efficiency of capital markets. The firms include Innova Limited, Pezesha Africa Limited and a third firm which remains anonymous. Innova will test its cloud-based data analytics platform designed for use by Investors, Fund Managers, Custodian Banks, Actuaries, Pension Administrators and Regulators. Pezesha will test an internet-based crowd-funding platform through which investors...

August 1, 2019
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July 2019

15Jul

Kenya: We Are Not Paying Ghosts, Pensions Chief Tells Auditor

The Pensions Department has accused Auditor-General Edward Ouko of misrepresenting facts by saying Sh67.9 billion was paid to ghost retirees. Mr Ouko, in a report tabled at the National Assembly two weeks ago, said individuals at the National Treasury may have taken advantage of the weaknesses in the Pensions Management Information System (PMIS) to authorise irregular payments. Of the money paid out, some 962 claimants received Sh1.6 billion -- which was made way before the end of their service...

July 15, 2019
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June 2019

21Jun

Kenya Pension Funds Too Big on Bonds, $39 Billion Firm Says

Kenyan retirees may be missing out on better returns because of the over-emphasis local pension fund managers place on domestic fixed-income assets, according to money manager Allan Gray. Retirement fund managers in East Africa’s largest economy invested less than 2% of their assets offshore, well short of the 15% allowed by the industry regulator as of the end of 2018, figures from the country’s Retirement Benefits Authority show. They cut allocations to equities to 17%, the lowest in at...

June 21, 2019
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04Jun

Kenya. Devolved pensions owed Sh24bn dues on key date

The pension industry Monday kicked off the 90th anniversary celebrations for the local authorities’ schemes (LapTrust) reeling from Sh24 billion dues unremitted by the counties. County Pension Fund chief executive Hosea Kili said if paid, pension schemes will partner with the government under a private-public arrangement for implementation of the low-cost housing schemes in major urban centres. “This is an opportunity for Kenyan workers to contribute towards development of their country by using pension funds to build low-cost houses...

June 4, 2019
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May 2019

30May

Kenya. Headcount reveals 40,000 ghost pensioners on payroll

Taxpayers have been paying billions of shillings to ghost pensioners after a headcount revealed that about 40,000 retired civil servants are dead and remain on the state payroll. The Pensions Department said Wednesday the two-month census that started in February did not capture about 50,000 pensioners, adding that it has confirmed that 40,000 of them are dead. The State had been paying relatives and dependants of dead people retirement benefits, helped by the growing use of ATM cards and...

May 30, 2019
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22May

Kenya. Retirements regulator strategic plan to boost assets

The pensions sector dropped in performance of various investments in the past year, a report has shown. The decrease in the assets during the half-year was attributed to the volatility in the stock market of which investment in quoted equities decreased by 19.83 per cent. The performance is, however, better than the year before, with marginal increases recorded. The top five fund managers during the period were Sanlam Investments East Africa, GenAfrica Asset Managers, Old Mutual Investment...

May 22, 2019
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10May

Financial Literacy and Saving for Retirement among Kenyan Households

By Teresa Schützeichel In this paper I examine financial literacy and saving for retirement in Kenya using the household survey of 2016 from FinAccess Kenya. I use probit regressions to determine the effect financial literacy has on individuals saving regularly as well as saving for retirement. My findings show that households with higher levels of financial literacy will tend to have a higher likelihood to save on a regular basis and subsequently save for retirement. I find that women, the...

May 10, 2019
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09May

Kenya. RBA targets Sh2.4trn via mobile phones

The Retirement Benefits Authority (RBA) is counting on the informal sector to more than double pension savings to Sh2.4 trillion in the next five years, riding on mobile phone-based products. Chief executive Nzomo Mutuku on Tuesday said roping in the sector will help grow pension coverage from the current 20 percent to at least 30 percent by 2024. “Informal sector cannot use payroll system to remit savings, so we want to have mobile phone-based platforms where one can make contributions. And...

May 9, 2019
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April 2019

02Apr

U.S. pension fund managers pledge investments in Kenya’s infrastructure

More than 30 representatives of U.S. pension and assets management funds said on Monday they plan to channel capital towards development of critical infrastructure in Kenya. The senior executives who manage assets worth about 100 trillion Kenyan shillings (about 1 trillion U.S. dollars) said they are keen to invest in roads, water, sanitation and housing projects to help realize socio-economic transformation in Kenya. "By moving from traditional investments in stocks and bonds to new opportunities in Kenyan roads, power...

April 2, 2019
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