By Gitahi Ngunyi
NIC Group’s income from lending to government of Kenya increased by 30 percent in 2018 compared to 2017 as income from private sector lending dropped 6 percent results forwarded to Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) today show.
The Group’s income statement shows that interest income from lending to government increased by Sh1.6 billion to Sh6.8 billion from Sh5.1 billion in 2017.
Interest income from private sector dropped by Sh806 million to Sh12.3 billion from Sh13.1 billion the previous year.
The performance is a reflection of a general trend in Kenya’s banking over the last two years where banks have been rearranging their balance sheets by pumping more cash into government lending and cutting off private sector credit.
In the case of NIC, the group lending to government lending increased by Sh8 billion to Sh58 billion from Sh50 billion in 2017.
The Group’s clawed away Sh2 billion from private sector credit to Sh110 billion from Sh112 billion.
