Visa has launched a pilot program in Kenya enabling businesses to use stablecoins to pre-fund cross-border payments via its Visa Direct platform, aiming to cut costs and ease liquidity pressures for financial institutions. This initiative targets banks, remittance providers, and other financial institutions for faster global payouts.

• Beneficiary: Kenya, where diaspora remittances are the largest source of foreign exchange, hitting Sh 680 billion ($4.5 billion) in 2024.
• Key Person: Chris Newkirk, President, Commercial and Money Movement Solutions at Visa.
• Timeline: Broader availability of the stablecoin integration is expected in 2026.

Family Bank shareholders will hold an Extraordinary General Meeting on October 27, 2025, to vote on listing the bank’s ordinary shares on the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) by introduction. This move aims to enhance liquidity for shareholders and improve transparency.

• In H1 2025, Family Bank's net profit increased by 39% to KSh 2.28 billion.
• The Bank’s board is considering an Initial Public Offering (IPO) if market conditions are favorable.
• The proposed listing would be the first major bank entry on the NSE in years, potentially revitalizing market activity.

The Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) has launched a new Banking Sector Index, effective October 1, 2025. This market-cap-weighted, float-adjusted index will serve as a benchmark for investors and facilitate the creation of new products like exchange-traded funds, following a strong performance by the banking sector in 2025.

• The index comprises the free float of all listed banks, with Equity Group Holdings having the largest market cap at KSh 218.9 Bn as of September 30, 2025.
• Frank Mwiti, NSE Chief Executive, highlighted the index as a demonstration of NSE's commitment to innovation and strengthening Kenya's capital markets.
• The launch comes amidst significant market rallies in 2025, with the NASI showing a 43.13% YTD gain and the NSE 20 up by 47.84% YTD as of September 30, 2025.