Only 1,450,000 Kenyans had more than 100,000 shillings in their bank accounts at the end of 2018 down from 1,583,000 recorded in 2017 by the Central Bank of Kenya.
The drop in the number of Kenyans with more than 100,000 shillings in accounts is the largest in 13 years showing the reality of how Kenyans are challenges in cash flows, an indication of a struggling economy.
In just three months, more than 2,000 Kenyans have lost their jobs as companies struggle to cut on costs and keep their businesses going. Some like SportPesa and Betin which fired 100 percent of their employees have decided to exit the Kenyan market.
The drop in the numbers of Kenyans with more than 100,000 shillings in their bank accounts tells a story of shrinking savings as well as cash flows for both individuals and Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs).
The number of bank accounts in Kenya in 2018 increased by 13.4 percent to 53.83 million but a large number of them have less than 100,000 shillings in them.
Kenya’s economy seems to be staggering though numbers show that the GDP is on the right trajectory. In 2018, the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) said that Kenya’s economy expanded by 5.8 percent.
Kenya’s middle class is receiving the heat from the struggling economy coupled with job cuts. Traditionally, it is said that the middle class is among the majority in Kenya who keep the economy going and who facilitate the flow of cash to the lower class.
Overall, 97 percent of bank accounts have less than 100,000 shillings in them with less than one percent of bank accounts holding more than 1 million shillings.
As things continue to become tough for millions of Kenyans, the SME sector which has been key in making sure that cash trickles down to the people is shrinking, with at least 1,000 closing don daily.
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