Co-operative Bank of Kenya has been ranked among the best performing banks in the world by Forbes, placing the Kenyan lender among leading financial institutions assessed on profitability, growth, capital strength and asset quality.
The Forbes ranking covered 500 banks from 89 countries, with the institutions assessed using a methodology that examined both their financial performance and resilience.
Banks were evaluated across four main dimensions, with profitability carrying a 30 per cent weighting, growth and earnings quality accounting for 20 per cent, capital and funding resilience 25 per cent, and asset quality and efficiency another 25 per cent.
Forbes assessed profitability by combining returns and efficiency indicators, including return on average assets, cost-to-income ratio and net interest margin.
The growth and earnings quality assessment looked at the strength and stability of earnings as well as customer deposit growth over a three-year period.
Capital and funding resilience was measured using indicators of capital strength and funding structure, including the equity ratio and loan-to-deposit ratio.
The final category assessed asset quality and efficiency by examining credit quality, risk management and balance sheet resilience.
The methodology therefore sought to identify banks that were not only profitable, but also capable of maintaining sustainable growth, managing risks and withstanding financial pressures.
To qualify for the global ranking, banks had to meet a number of requirements. They were required to be licensed deposit-taking institutions whose core business includes lending to retail or corporate clients.
They also had to report under reconcilable national accounting standards, publish audited financial statements for the most recent fully available fiscal year and provide at least three consecutive years of financial data.
In addition, qualifying institutions were required to have more than $3 billion in assets.
Co-op Bank’s inclusion in the Forbes ranking places it among financial institutions that demonstrated strength across the four areas used in the assessment.
The recognition comes as Kenyan banks continue to focus on strengthening profitability, growing their customer base and maintaining resilient balance sheets while managing credit and operational risks.
For Co-op Bank, the Forbes ranking offers an international measure of its performance, highlighting the lender’s position not only in terms of its size but also its ability to generate returns, sustain growth, maintain capital and funding strength and manage the quality of its assets.
