Author: Kaluka wanjala

Diamond Trust Bank (DTB) reported a 26% growth in profit before tax and 21% growth in profit after tax to KSh 10.7 billion for the financial year ending December 31, 2025. Total assets rose by 15% and customer deposits surpassed the half-trillion mark to reach KSh 509 billion. This represents a 14% rise. Net loans on the other hand grew by 14% to KSh 324 billion. DTB’s customer base across East Africa rose to 4.5 million customers, up from 3.1 million in 2024. The bank attributed this to its growing branch network which now sits at 157 locations. DTB reported…

National Bank of Kenya (NBK) has reported a profit before tax jumped 178% to KSh 2.91 billion for the financial year ending December 31, 2025. This is up from KSh 1.05 billion in 2024. Profit after tax rose 125% to KSh 2.39 billion. “The Bank’s performance reflects disciplined execution of our turnaround priorities and a sustained focus on strengthening the balance sheet, improving asset quality and enhancing operational efficiency. We are confident that this momentum will continue as we scale the business. While we have made strong progress in stabilizing the business, we are now focused on accelerating growth and…

By Angela Ng’ang’a, Board President, American Chamber of Commerce Kenya (AmCham Kenya) Kenya’s creative economy is evolving from cultural promise into investment reality. Spanning film, music, digital content, gaming, fashion, and sports, the sector has emerged as one of Africa’s most dynamic growth frontiers, propelled by digital adoption, favorable demographics, progressive policy reform, and deepening international partnerships. Conservative estimates from government and industry sources consistently place the creative sector’s contribution at approximately 5% of Kenya’s GDP. Recent assessments suggest the figure ranges between 5% and 5.6%, while supporting substantial employment, underscoring the sector’s expanding economic relevance (Kenya Investment Authority; industry…

Orca Fraud has raised $2.35 million in seed funding to accelerate the growth of its real-time transaction monitoring and fraud intelligence platform across Africa and other emerging markets. If you have a startup you want featured on TechArena, let us know through this contact form here. This latest round was led by returning investor Norrsken22. The round also saw the participation of OneDayYes, Enza Capital and CV VC Africa. Founded by Thalia Pillay and Carla Wilby, the company has positioned itself as a key infrastructure layer for fraud detection in high-velocity payment ecosystems. Orca Fraud reports that it now processes over $5 billion…

Sistema.bio has announced the financial close and launch of FarmCarbon. This is a new carbon finance vehicle designed to channel global climate capital directly to smallholder farmers adopting biogas technology. If you have a startup you want featured on TechArena, let us know through this contact form here. The first close of the facility amounts to US$53 million, with backing from major institutional investors including BNP Paribas Asset Management (through its Alts platform), British International Investment (BII) and Shell Foundation. FarmCarbon is expected to finance over 90,000 biodigesters globally. This is expected to allow farmers to capture and destroy methane from livestock waste.…

Samsung has announced the comprehensive AI computing technologies it will showcase at NVIDIA GTC 2026 in San Jose, California, scheduled for March 16-19. As the industry’s only semiconductor company offering a total AI solution spanning memory, logic, foundry and advanced packaging, Samsung will exhibit its full suite of products and solutions that enable customers to design and build groundbreaking AI systems. The centerpiece of Samsung’s showcase at NVIDIA GTC 2026 will be the new sixth-generation HBM4, which is now in mass production and is designed for the NVIDIA Vera Rubin platform. Samsung’s HBM4 is expected to help accelerate the development of future…

Last week, Ndovu Wealth Limited launched the Kibaba Multi-Asset Special Fund in Kenya.  This Fund is available in both Kenyan shillings and US dollars. It is targeting medium to long-term investors with a moderate risk appetite. Investors can access the fund with a minimum initial investment of KES 250,000 for the KES-denominated option and $2,500 for the USD-denominated option. Speaking at the launch, Ndovu Wealth CEO and Co-Founder Radhika Bhachu said the fund was developed in response to shifting investor needs and growing demand for global investment opportunities. “We created the Kibaba Multi-Asset Special Fund in response to the evolving…

Cellulant has appointed Darren Makarem as its new Chief Financial Officer. Makarem brings more than two decades of experience across fintech and digital platforms. He joins Cellulant after holding senior roles at global companies including Agoda, where he served as Global CFO and oversaw a payments network handling approximately $12 billion in annual transaction volume. “Darren doesn’t just understand the numbers; he understands the customer,” said Peter O’Toole, CEO of Cellulant. “His experience as a high-volume user of payment services gives him a unique perspective on what businesses need to grow.” His career also includes leadership roles at Binance, where…

New data from a report by Bolt in partnership with Ipsos shows that over 50% of gig workers in Kenya now rely on it as their primary source of income. According to the report, Kenya’s gig economy now supports approximately 1.5 million workers. This accounts for about 5–6% of the country’s labour force. The sector generates an estimated $1.09 billion (KES ~140 billion) annually. Soyinka Witness, Strategy Director, Ipsos said, “The findings from this study highlight the increasingly important role platform-based work is playing in Kenya’s evolving labour market. More than half of ride-hailing drivers rely on these platforms as…

Equity Group has reported the highest profit in Kenya’s corporate history. The bank has posted a 55% jump in profit after tax to KSh75.5 billion for the financial year ending 2025, up from KSh48.8 billion the previous year. Total income rose 12% to KSh217.7 billion, supported by a 17% increase in net interest income and a 7% growth in non-funded income. The Group’s balance sheet expanded to KSh1.97 trillion, with customer deposits reaching KSh1.46 trillion. Over 98% of customer transactions were conducted outside branches, with 88.4% happening through digital channels. This is a similar trend from what we reported a…