Central Bank of Kenya

The Central Bank of Kenya was set up during 1966 through the Central Bank of Kenya Act of 1966. It aims to be a central bank that is at par with international standards. Its board of directors is made up of the following officials:

• Governor
• Permanent Secretary to the Treasury
• Deputy Governor
• 5 Non Executive Directors

The roles and duties of the CBK have been redefined over the years, after the Central Bank of Kenya Act was amended during April 1997. The apex Kenyan bank has also remodeled its operations in accordance with the economic reforms.

Central Bank of Kenya - Mandate:

The core and subsidiary mandate of the apex Kenyan banking organization may be stated as below:

• Implementation and formulation of monetary policies for maintaining and achieving consistency in prices
• Supporting the economic policies formulated by the government for employment and overall growth
• Promotion of solvency and liquidity and ensuring that the market based financial set-up functions properly
• Implementing and creating foreign exchange policies
• Implementation and creation of policies which are necessary for supervising and regulating settlement and payment clearing systems that are effective
• Management and possession of foreign exchange reserves
• Acting as a fiscal agent for the government
• Supervising and licensing authorized dealers
• Issuing currency coins and notes

Central Bank of Kenya - Debt Financing Instruments:

The following debt financing instruments are offered by the reserve bank of Kenya:

• CDS Accounts
• Treasury Bills
• Treasury Bonds
• Infrastructure Bonds

Central Bank of Kenya - Notes and Coins:

The Kenyan reserve bank issues notes in the following denominations:

• 50 Kenyan Shillings
• 500 Kenyan Shillings
• 100 Kenyan Shillings
• 1000 Kenyan Shillings
• 200 Kenyan Shillings

The Central Bank of Kenya circulates coins in the following denominations:

• 50 Cents
• 10 Shillings
• 1 Shilling
• 20 Shillings
• 5 Shillings
• 40 Shillings

Central Bank of Kenya - Financial Highlights:

As per the annual report for the fiscal year 2010-11:

• Net Revenue = 48,086 million Kenyan shillings
• Profit = 39,556 million Kenyan shillings
• Total assets = 446,616 million Kenyan shillings

Central Bank of Kenya - Supervision:

The Bank Supervision Department of the Central Bank of Kenya operates as per the Section 4 (2) of the Central Bank of Kenya Act. It promotes solvency and liquidity in the financial system so that it operates properly. It supervises the following financial institutions:

• Commercial banks
• Microfinance institutions
• Mortgage finance institutions
• Forex bureaus
• Representative offices of international financial organizations
• Credit reference bureaus

Central Bank of Kenya - Legislation:

The CBK operates as per the following laws:

• Constitution of Kenya 2010
• Foreign Exchange Guidelines
• Central Bank of Kenya Act
• Forex Bureau Guidelines 2011
• Banking Act
• Agent Banking Guidelines
• Microfinance Act
• Risk Management Guidelines
• Prudential Guidelines
• Agency Guideline for DTMs
• STR Guidance Note

Central Bank of Kenya - Contact Details:

The Central Bank of Kenya can be contacted at the following address:
Haile Selassie Avenue,
P.O Box 60000-00200,
Nairobi, Kenya
Phone/Fax: +254-20-2860000