Family Bank Plc has posted its first earnings as a listed company.
Profit after tax hit KSh 3.70 billion for H1 2026, up 62 per cent from KSh 2.20 billion a year earlier. It is the bank's best half-year result ever.
Management credits its Biashara MSME lending push.
The balance sheet tells a different story. Net interest income jumped 41 per cent, from KSh 6.95 billion to KSh 9.78 billion. That single line drove the profit surge.
Treasury, Not Loans
Net loans grew a modest 10 per cent, to KSh 111.06 billion. Government securities holdings jumped 55 per cent, to KSh 94.10 billion. The bank leaned into sovereign paper, not business lending.
This paid off because of falling rates. The Central Bank of Kenya has cut its benchmark rate ten times since August 2024, from 13 per cent to 8.75 per cent.
Deposit costs fell faster than yields on securities bought earlier. That gap boosted margins.
Non-interest income fell 14 per cent, to KSh 2.30 billion, from KSh 2.68 billion.
It is the first such decline since 2020. Fee and commission income stayed flat. “Other income” dropped 33 per cent and dragged the total down.
Asset Quality Under Watch
Gross non-performing loans rose to KSh 18.14 billion, from KSh 15.21 billion.
That is faster growth than the loan book itself. Provisions rose 50 per cent, to KSh 998.25 million. Management is setting aside more cover even as it lends cautiously.
Total assets grew 24 per cent, to KSh 238.93 billion. Deposits rose 20 per cent, to KSh 180.20 billion. EPS rose to KSh 2.23, from KSh 1.75.
Market Reaction
Family Bank listed on the NSE by introduction on June 23, 2026, at KSh 18.00 per share. The stock rallied 81 per cent by July 31, to KSh 32.50. Market value hit KSh 54.0 billion. No interim dividend was declared.
The bigger question is what happens as rates keep falling.
The treasury spread that drove this result should narrow. The real test is whether loan growth accelerates once credit risk looks safer.
