Bank Al Habib Limited (BAHL) has closed its representative office in Kenya, citing change of its international strategy.
The Pakistan-based bank, which opened a representative office in 2018 with an eye on the East and Central African region, said it would cease operation effective May 15.
“Closure of the representative office follows a strategic review undertaken by the board of directors of BAHL and is part of a broader global restructuring initiative aimed at consolidating international operations and improving overall operational efficiency,” said the bank.
The bank, which also operates representative offices in China, Turkey and Dubai, did not disclose whether the strategy affects any of its other offices. The lender also has international branches in Malaysia and Bahrain.
Global expansion
At the time of entry, BAHL had identified Kenya to be its launch pad into the East and Central Africa region as part of its global expansion strategy. Its exit leaves it without an African presence signalling a departure from the initial goal.
The lender has 1,248 branches spread over 495 cities with nearly all domiciled in Pakistan where it is listed on the Pakistan Stock Exchange. BAHL’s main offerings were sharia compliant credit products.
BAHL becomes the second international lender to close its Kenyan representative offices following the exit of Rwanda’s Bank of Kigali last year. Bank of Kigali cited a focus on digital service delivery channels on its exit.
There are now eight representative offices of international banks in the country which are allowed to solicit lending deals for their parent offices without accepting deposits from the public.
Data from the central bank shows the representative offices facilitated business worth Sh413 billion in 2023 up from Sh365 billion the previous year.
The Kenyan credit market has been sluggish due to a tough macro-economic environment that has seen most lenders turn to lending to the government rather than the private sector.
