KCB Group PLC is poised to become the first commercial lender in Kenya to issue a green bond.
The country's second-biggest bank by assets plans to issue a green bond in 2022, with CEO Joshua Oigara saying the lender is "probably the most ready institution to move in that direction," according to Bloomberg News.
The Net-Zero Banking Alliance, an initiative comprising global banks that commit to reducing emissions by 2050 through responsible lending and investments, only has three participants from the Middle East and Africa, and one of them is KCB. The bank initially planned to launch its first green bond by 2020, as part of initiatives mapped out in its 2019 sustainability report.
"Our hope is that if we lead by example, others in the region will follow," Oigara said.
South African lenders Nedbank Ltd., FirstRand Ltd. and The Standard Bank of South Africa Ltd. are currently the top three issuers of green bonds in Africa, according to data from the Climate Bonds Initiative. Nedbank's total issuance is nearly $674 million as of Nov. 22, 2021, while those of FirstRand and Standard Bank stand at $225 million and $200 million, respectively.
By country, South Africa has the highest volume of green bond issuance by financial corporates at roughly $1.19 billion, followed by Morocco and Nigeria.
Morocco's total issued volume comprises Banque Centrale's $151 million issuance and Bank of Africa's $50 million, while Nigeria's Access Bank PLC and Namibia-based Bank Windhoek Ltd. are the only financial corporations to have issued green bonds within their respective countries, Climate Bonds Initiative data shows.
Other news
* The China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission Shanghai Office has granted the United Arab Emirates' First Abu Dhabi Bank PJSC, or FAB, a financial license to open a local branch, Gulf Business reported. The Shanghai branch, which will be FAB's first branch in mainland China, is expected to launch full operations in the first quarter of 2022.
* Shuaa Capital PSC is considering listing two of its portfolio companies, Stanford Marine Group and NCM Investment, in early 2022, sources told Bloomberg News. The UAE-based asset manager is in negotiations with the Dubai Financial Market on the planned IPO. The two companies' combined assets are valued at 2 billion dirhams.
* The UAE's central bank issued guidelines to help licensed exchange houses combat money laundering and terrorism financing, and granted players one month to comply, Al-Bayan reported. The measures take Financial Action Task Force standards into account.
* Dubai Financial Market (DFM) PJSC launched an incentive program to boost the number of IPOs in the UAE, including financial support for the cost of listings and certain fee waivers.
* UAE-based Standard Chartered Saadiq launched a $100 million Islamic finance program to support small and medium-sized halal enterprises in Asia, the Middle East and Africa, Zawya reported.
* Israel Discount Bank Ltd.'s third-quarter net profit attributed to shareholders surged year over year to 722 million shekels from 258 million shekels. The Israeli lender's return on equity jumped to 14.5% in the period from 5.5% a year ago.
* Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani appointed Sheikh Bandar bin Mohamed bin Saud al-Thani central bank governor, according to a statement posted on the website of the Emiri Court.
* The Egyptian Financial Regulatory Authority outlined rules for special purpose acquisition companies planning to list on the local bourse, Arab News reported. SPACs should be at least 50% owned by legal persons, and their issued and paid-up capital should be at least 10 million Egyptian pounds.
* Egypt-based EFG-Hermes Holding SAE completed the acquisition of a 51% stake in Arab Investment Bank.
* Saudi Arabia-based Al Rajhi Co. for Cooperative Insurance and Al Rajhi Banking & Investment Corp. signed a bancassurance agreement through which the latter will provide marketing and distribution of bancassurance products for the former.
* The central banks of six of the seven major economies in Africa are unlikely to raise interest rates, Bloomberg News reported. The countries are experiencing a spike in inflation, and regulators are expected to avoid a hike to support economies that were affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
* KCB Group's profit after tax and exceptional items for the nine months to September-end stood at 25.21 billion Kenyan shillings, up from 10.89 billion shillings a year ago. The company's loan loss provision for the period fell to 9.33 billion shillings from 20.01 billion shillings in the year-ago period.
Abdelghani Henni contributed to this report.
