List of Top-Paid Kenyan Bank CEOs in 2025, KCB Boss Paul Russo Leads
Wycliffe Musalia has over six years of experience in financial, business, technology, climate, and health reporting, providing deep insights into Kenyan and global economic trends. He currently works as a business editor at .
The banking sector's top executive job remains Kenya's most lucrative career of all time.
Source: UGC
In 2024, commercial banks paid chief executive officers (CEOs) millions of shillings in basic salary and bonuses.
According to disclosures by banks, the combined salary for CEOs of the top nine commercial banks hit about KSh 1.2 trillion.
The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) reported that the banking sector recorded a pre-tax profit of KSh 262 billion during the same year under review.
Speaking exclusively to , economist Daniel Kathali said the growth in bank profits could have resulted from interest income banks get from increased government domestic borrowing and high interest rates.
"If you look at the country's domestic debt (KSh 6.2 trillion), it means that the government is borrowing more locally. This has attracted many companies, especially banks, to Treasury bonds and bills, which guarantee high returns and profits.
"In 2024, banks also increased interest rates on loans, some charging up to 20% on loans. High interest income earns profit for these lenders," said Kathali.
Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB) Group CEO Paul Russo pocketed KSh 250.2 million in total compensation.
This represented a 40.8% increase from the previous year's salary, surpassing Co-op Bank CEO Gideon Muriuki as the highest-paid bank executive
NCBA Bank CEO John Gachora emerged as the second top-paid bank CEO in the country, earning KSh 208 million.
Source: Twitter
The third leading commercial bank CEO in terms of salary and bonuses is Standard Chartered CEO Kariuki Ngari, who posted a 43.5% pay rise to KSh 174.4 million.
Other CEOs who received pay rise are:
However, some lenders cut the pay rise of CEOs during the period. These are:
- DTB Bank CEO Nasim Devji - KSh 62.9 million, a drop of 4.2%.
Meanwhile, the majority of the top-paid CEOs hold shares in the companies they manage, earning them dividends on top of their salaries.
In the financial year ending December 31, 2024, Co-op Bank CEO Muriuki had a shareholding of 2% in the company.
Equity Group Managing Director and CEO Mwangi holds a 3.387% stake in the bank, or 127,809,180 shares.
Source: TUKO.co.ke
