Diamond Trust Bank Kenya (DTB Kenya) has announced plans to divest its 83.67% stake in DTB Burundi to a consortium of primarily Burundian investors, including the bank’s existing minority shareholder, Business Daily reported.
DTB Kenya, listed on the Nairobi Securities Exchange, operates across East Africa, with subsidiaries also in Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania.
The Burundi transaction, approved by the DTB Kenya Board on September 20 and disclosed on September 23, is subject to regulatory approvals from the central banks of both countries and the Kenyan Capital Markets Authority. Once finalised, DTB Burundi will cease to be a subsidiary of DTB Kenya.
Established in 2009 with a single branch in Bujumbura, DTB Burundi has grown to operate four branches and ranks among the top ten banks in Burundi.
Group CEO Nasim Devji stated as quoted by The Kenyan Wall Street, “The Board has reviewed the offer from the consortium and considers that it represents fair value and a return on investment for DTB.”
She added that the buyers had committed to maintaining and expanding the bank’s financial inclusion agenda.
The divestment of DTB Kenya's 83.67% stake in DTB Burundi comes as domestic credit to the private sector by banks reached 48.1% of GDP in 2023, according to Trading Economics.
The banking sector contributes around 6.8% of GDP and 2.5% of total employment, per the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER). Financial inclusion initiatives, such as IFAD’s PAIFAR-B project, support over 99,000 rural smallholder households. These figures show Burundi’s banking sector is growing while working to expand access and integrate more broadly into the economy.
As of December 2024, DTB Burundi reported a net profit of BIF 1.16bn ($0.39mn), a 94.3% increase from the previous year. Total assets stood at BIF 105.4bn ($35.51mn), with customer deposits at BIF 49.6bn ($16.71mn) and gross loans at BIF 49.0bn ($16.51mn). The bank's equity increased by 5.4% year-on-year to BIF 32.5bn ($10.95mn). Profitability nearly doubled due to reduced credit provisions, and liquidity was shifted into financial investments, which rose 41% year-on-year.
DTB has cautioned shareholders and the investing public to exercise care when trading its shares on the Nairobi Securities Exchange until the divestment is completed, Capital Business reported.
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