Kenyatta family owned bank shuts 14 branches amid COVID-19

NCBA Bank Group largely owned by the Kenyatta family has shut down 14 of its branches across the country as COVID-19 continues to bite.

The lender is the third-largest by assets in Kenya following the merger of NIC and CBA banks in 2019.

In a notice to its customers, the financial institution stated the merger had left it with branch overlaps where outlets faced each other in some instances.

It said the closure would enhance efficiency from the merged entities but it did not disclose how many employees would be affected by exercise.

“On April 1, 2020, the bank announced the temporary closure of eight branches in response to COVID-19. After careful consideration, we have decided to permanently close seven of these branches. In addition, we have identified another seven branches, which will be permanently closed,”

“The proposed actions will enable NCBA to accelerate the realisation of merger synergies, create operational efficiencies and enhance service delivery,”the lender said.

The affected branches belonged to the former NIC Bank (eight) while were CBA’s sread out in Nairobi, Nanyuki, Machakos, Mombasa, Diani, Eldoret and Meru.

The lender advised customers to access other close branches for services.

“Since the merger, we have been looking at our branch network and had plans to open 15 new ones across the country as part of increasing our footprint across the country,”

“This plan is currently under review in light of the pandemic but we remain optimistic that once the economy begins to recover we will roll out this growth strategy,” it said.