Data from the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) showed Kenyans deposited KSh 1.55 trillion in US dollars. Kenyans and companies dealing in imports increased their bank dollar deposits for the year ending December 2023.
This represented a growth of 68% in dollar deposits to banks for the past 12 months to December 2023.The report attributed the growth to corporate dollar account deposits, which rose by 70% in September 2023 as firms held on to the greenback.
This is according to the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) report, which showed that bank dollar deposits grew by 68% to KSh 1.55 trillion in value.
The growth in US dollar deposits to local banks followed a sharp decline in Kenyan shillings against the greenback. In December 2023, the shilling exchanged at KSh 153.34 against the dollar.
The report contained in the National Treasury prospectus for its new Eurobond issue showed that companies dealing with imports increased their dollar deposits by 70% in September 2023, compared to 56% during the same month in 2022.
The US currency gained 27% against the shilling during the same period under review, acting as a safe haven for investors who gained a lot of interest on their deposits.