SBM Bank Kenya has announced that it has reported a net profit of Ksh. 591 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2026. This is an impressive 108.83%  increase from the Ksh. 283 million the company posted in a similar period in 2025.

The company noted that the increase in net profit was driven by strong growth across core banking revenue, disciplined cost management, and significant progress in legacy credit cleanup.

Key performance highlights

  • Operating Profit: Advanced 197% to Ksh. 1.3 billion, up from Ksh. 447 million in Q3 2025.
  • Total Income: Increased 33% year-on-year to Ksh. 5.444 billion.
  • Net Interest Income: Grew 29% to Ksh. 3.443 billion.
  • Non-Funded Income: Climbed 39% to Ksh. 2.001 billion, propelled by a 95% jump in transactional income and a 98% rise in trade finance commissions.
  • Operating Expenses: Kept under control at 12% growth, well below the pace of revenue expansion.
  • Customer Deposits: Expanded 29% year-on-year to reach Ksh. 97.3 billion.
  • Net Loan Book: Rose 23% to Ksh. 56.5 billion.

A key contributor to the lender’s overall performance was a dramatic reduction in non-performing loans (NPLs). The NPL ratio fell to 16.9% as of September 30, 2026, down by 15.4 percentage points from 32.3% a year earlier and down from 17.3% recorded at the end of June 2026.

The bank posted a net impairment charge of Ksh. 418 million for the nine-month period as it continued to address legacy portfolio risk through provisioning and write-downs. Underlining tighter credit underwriting, loans issued since May 2024, when Chief Executive Officer Bhartesh Shah assumed leadership, maintain an NPL ratio of just 1%.

“Strong institutions are built through decisions that reinforce one another over time. We have focused on strengthening our systems, improving credit discipline and earning a larger place in our customers’ everyday lives,” said Bhartesh Shah, CEO of SBM Bank Kenya. “The 1% NPL ratio on loans underwritten since May 2024 is encouraging. Our responsibility is to sustain that discipline as the portfolio matures and lending grows.”

To support future scalability, SBM Bank Kenya completed its core banking platform upgrade to Oracle FLEXCUBE 14.8 and fully migrated to the iCUST loan-origination system. Management’s focus now shifts to embedding these technologies in daily operations to shorten transaction turnarounds, improve credit execution, and boost productivity across its 34 branches nationwide.