This archive report was first published on 3 September 2019.
Spire Bank, a teachers-owned lender, has made a remarkable turnaround, posting a Sh81.4 million net profit for the six months to June, after a Sh419.5 million loss in a similar period last year.
According to the bank's financial records, its other income has increased significantly, jumping from Sh16 million last year to Sh198 million in June, which has boosted non-interest income by Sh269 million compared to the Sh99 million posted last year.
However, loan incomes from government and customers have declined, coming in at Sh319 million, down from Sh477 million last year, due to a decrease in loans from Sh4.8 billion to Sh3.7 billion.
The bank has also managed to reduce expenses on customer deposits, from Sh196 million to Sh172 million, mainly due to the loss of some deposits. Deposits stood at Sh4.6 billion by June this year, down from Sh6.6 billion in a similar period in 2018.
Spire Bank continues to hold Sh2.1 billion deposits from the Central Bank of Kenya and has improved its core capital position from negative Sh1.1 billion last year to negative Sh740 million.
However, its liquidity ratio has sunk further below the Central Bank of Kenya's requirements, standing at 8.9 percent, down from 9.6 percent, while the CBK requires a minimum ratio of 20 percent.
