The Cooperative Bank of Kenya has been added to the influential Morgan Stanley markets index, the MSCI Frontier Markets Index.

The MSCI Frontier Markets Index, created by Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI), tracks the performance of large and mid-cap listed companies, providing foreign investors with an up-to-date picture of the state of the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE), allowing them to make informed investment decisions.

The listing of Co-op Bank is a huge boost as MSCI indices serve as benchmarks for institutional investors looking to gain exposure to frontier markets, and the inclusion of Kenyan companies is expected to increase their visibility and attractiveness to global investors.

“The inclusion is a reflection of the success of the structural market reforms that are positively impacting Kenya’s equity market, making it efficient for global investors to invest in securities listed on the NSE in Kenya,” said the NSE chief executive officer Frank Mwiti.

“The positive impacts are further reflected in the strong performance of the NSE benchmark indices and the return of positive foreign investor inflows in the NSE as witnessed in the first half of the year 2024.”

Co-op Bank giving Sh. 500k to Sh. 8mn loans to buy, build homes at reducing balance

In this first half of the year, Co-op Bank posted a 7 per cent increase in half year net profit to Sh. 12.9 billion.

The bank’s total assets increased by 7.8 per cent to Sh. 716 billion. Net interest income increased by 10.7 per cent to Sh. 23.9 billion while non-interest income increased by 11.2 per cent to Sh. 15.4 billion.

Customer loans increased by 2.8 per cent to Sh. 375.6 billion while customer deposits increased by 9.4 per cent to Sh. 507.4 billion.

During the period under review, revenue grew by 10.9 per cent to Sh. 39.2 billion while shareholders’ funds increased by 17 per cent to Sh. 126.7 billion.

“The strong performance by the Bank is in line with the Group’s strategic focus on sustainable growth, resilience, and agility delivering a Return on Equity of 22.1 per cent,”  Co-op Bank Group Chief Executive Gideon Muriuki said. “The Co-operative Bank Group continues to pursue strategic initiatives that focus on resilience and growth in the various economic sectors.”