- Diamond Trust Bank (DTB) has opened three new brick-and-mortar branches in Kenya as part of its growth strategy, to bring its branch network in the country to 64
- The three new branches are located at Imara Daima (Imaara Mall), Kamakis (Viashla Business Centre) and Kahawa Sukari (Ruhan Plaza)
- The lender also announced that it would open 17 more branches in Kenya before the end of 2022, signalling a sizeable expansion in its branch network
Regional lender Diamond Trust Bank (DTB) has opened three new brick-and-mortar branches in Kenya as part of its growth strategy, The Exchange Africa has learned.
DTB said the three new branches are located at Imara Daima (Imaara Mall), Kamakis (Viashla Business Centre) and Kahawa Sukari (Ruhan Plaza).
The new branches now bring DTB’s physical branch network in Kenya to 64.
DTB Kenya Chairperson Linus Gitahi described the move as part of the bank’s plan to deepen its market presence in fast-growing regions.
“As a tier-one bank, we are keen on increasing our market presence as this underpins our growth strategy. The investments we are making are not only a show of the bank’s financial strength but also a sign of commitment to creating more convenience for our customers,” Gitahi said.
Commenting on the opening of the new branches, DTB Group CEO Nasim Devji said the move to expand its branch network is a testament to the lender’s confidence in the Kenyan economy.
“As DTB, we remain optimistic about Kenya’s economic recovery. We are making strides to be closer to our customers to support them to attain their personal and business goals,” said Devji.
DTB’s move to open three new physical branches in one day is a corporate hat-trick that is a first in Kenya’s banking industry.
The lender also announced that it would open 17 more branches in Kenya before the end of 2022, signalling a sizeable expansion in its branch network.
Improved performance
The opening of the new branches months after the bank announced a 42 per cent rise in its pre-tax profit to KSh 6.6 billion for the year ended 31 December 2021.
The bank said the performance was on the back of enhanced interest income earnings and a continued focus on cost management during the year.
The group’s asset base stood at KSh 457 billion, growing by 7 per cent in 2021. At the same time, customer deposits closed at a record KSh 331 billion, which was 11 per cent above the previous year.
DTB also noted that the contribution of its subsidiaries to the overall results of the group continued to grow, with those in Tanzania, Uganda and Burundi making up 30 per cent of the group’s assets and profitability.
Following the improved performance, DTB also announced a resumption in dividend payments.
As such, for the financial year 2021, DTB’s board proposed a dividend of KSh 839 million or KSh 3.00 per share, reflecting a payout ratio of 22 per cent, the highest in over ten years.
Gitahi said the board would continue to strike an equitable balance between rewarding shareholders and conserving capital to fund the bank’s investment and expansion plans.
“We anticipate that the dividend payouts will progressively increase in the years ahead as we continue to realise our aspirations to pivot DTB as a customer-centric, top-tier digitally-driven Bank in East Africa,” said Gitahi.
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Commenting on the results, Devji also said that the performance was a testimony to the strong foundation and resilience the group has built over the years, underpinned by the trust and confidence reposed by DTB’s customers.
“We believe that the resilience, strong foundation, existing capabilities and new competencies that we acquire will position DTB in a sweet take-off spot to become a top-tier digitally driven bank in East Africa and anchor itself as truly customer-centric,” said Devji.
Devji said they had embarked on an aggressive growth strategy with plans to grow its footprint in Kenya by 20 branches in 2022 and another 20 by 2024. This will expand the bank’s network size in Kenya to over 100 branches – and in East Africa to nearly 200- over the next two years.
DTB added that they were implementing an ambitious digital transformation program which aims at pivoting the bank to be digital to the core. This will involve an investment of over $30 million over the next two years in building a digitally literate talent pool and acquiring agile digital platforms, cyber security assets, data analytics and artificial intelligence capabilities.
