This archive report was first published on 4 July 2019.
On June 24, 2019, the Public Investment Committee of the National Assembly gave the National Bank of Kenya two weeks to be audited by the office of the Auditor General.
The committee, which is investigating the proposed takeover of NBK by the Kenya Commercial Bank, believes the bank is underpriced and needs to be valued by the state's audit office.
The KCB has offered to buy 100% of National Bank of Kenya through a share swap of 1 KCB share for every 10 of NBK shares, valuing the bank at 6.6 billion shillings.
The deal, which has been approved by the Central Bank of Kenya, aims to provide a financial lifeline to the troubled lender, which has been experiencing a loss-making streak.
However, the Public Investment Committee has faulted the deal, saying it is conducting investigations to determine whether the interests of pensioners, employees, and taxpayers have been protected.
The committee has directed the bank to provide its books to the Auditor General for a thorough audit and given the AOGs office 14 days to table an audit report on the financial position of the bank.
