Stockbrokers and investment banks nearly tripled their revenue in the first half of this year, lifted by Faida Investment Bank’s transaction fees from the Kenya Pipeline Company’s initial public offering (IPO) and Standard Investment Bank’s Mansa X Fund fees.
A Business Daily analysis of the industry financials shows that the market intermediaries collectively booked income of Sh9.88 billion in the six months to June, up from Sh3.7 billion they booked in the same period a year earlier.
The higher revenue resulted in a tripling of the industry’s net profits to Sh3.59 billion from Sh1.15 billion, offering owners of brokerage firms and investment bankers juicy dividends.
The Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) also reported a three-fold rise in half-year net profit to Sh736.9 million, from Sh272.3 million, on the back of higher transaction levies from share trading.
The higher earnings represent a sharp turnaround for an industry that was struggling for survival just three years ago on the back of a prolonged bear run that decimated trading commissions and deal-making activities, such as corporate bonds and IPOs.
In the first half of 2023, the industry collectively reported revenue of Sh2 billion and a net profit of Sh365 million.
A bull run at the NSE, which started in 2024, prompted increased sales and purchases of shares that offered brokers higher commissions.
The stockbrokers reported a 73 percent increase in commissions to Sh2.76 billion in the first half of 2026.
The game changer on revenue comes from the return of listings at the NSE after Kenya Pipeline and Family Bank ended a decade of IPO drought, and the emergence of special investment funds such as SIB’s Mansa X and Faida’s Oak Fund, which have netted the firms large fee income.
“The period under review marked a significant turning point for the NSE, with a notable resurgence in listing and capital-raising activity. The successful listing of KPC, followed by Family Bank, ended an IPO drought of more than a decade and represented a landmark milestone in the growth, depth, and diversification of the market,” said the NSE.
“Trading activity was supported by increased participation from both institutional and retail investors, alongside a significant block trade involving 6.01 billion Safaricom shares valued at Sh204.3 billion, which materially boosted market liquidity and turnover.”
Stockbrokers normally charge a commission of 0.03 percent per bond trade and between 1.5 percent and 1.8 percent for equities, with the NSE and the Capital Markets Authority (CMA) also taking a cut from these commissions. Fees for advisory and placement work for corporate deals are negotiated.
Faida and SIB accounted for nearly half of the industry’s revenues at Sh2.69 billion and Sh2.07 billion respectively, a pointer that firms that diversified to special funds are reaping the benefits.
Other top income earners are NCBA Investment Bank at Sh830 million, KCB Investment Bank at Sh668.4 billion, Dry Associates Investment Bank at Sh663.3 million and Dyer & Blair Investment Bank at Sh649.4 million.
The presence of Faida, SIB and Dyer & Blair among the top brokers signals a resurgence of standalone players controlled by long-time stock market barons, who in recent years lost business to intermediaries backed by deep-pocketed banks.
Faida is controlled by Bob Karina, SIB by James Wangunyu and Dyer & Blair by Jimnah Mbaru.
Faida’s fortunes were lifted by its role as the lead transaction advisor on the Sh106 billion Kenya Pipeline IPO, where it had negotiated a success fee equivalent to one percent of the gross proceeds upon the successful conclusion of the offer.
A success fee is a performance-based commission paid out to an underwriter or advisor upon the successful closing of a deal, incentivising them to market the transaction.
The payment of this fee boosted Faida’s advisory fee revenue to Sh1.96 billion in the six months to June from Sh15.2 million last year. The company also reported investment management fees of Sh454.5 million, up from Sh85.2 million.
Its net profit jumped to Sh800.5 million from Sh49 million in the first half of 2025 as a result, highlighting the large impact of its IPO contract.
SIB reported a net profit of Sh1.1 billion, mainly backed by its Sh1.8 billion management fees accruing from its Mansa X funds, whose total assets grew to Sh189.5 billion in June 2026 from Sh76.7 billion a year earlier.
The company led the Family Bank listing and the Sh13 billion I&M Bank corporate bond issuance in May, boosting its transaction income. Dyer & Blair and KCB Investment Bank benefited from handling corporate deals, with their transaction income standing at Sh515 million and Sh498 million respectively.
Dyer acted as a placing agent of the Sh40 billion Safaricom corporate bond, with SBG Securities acting as joint lead arranger alongside its parent, Stanbic Bank and Standard Chartered Kenya.
However, the impact of the higher revenue on the net profits of the stockbrokers was offset by rising operating costs, which rose from Sh2.1 billion in June 2025 to Sh5.2 billion this year.
Faida reported the highest expenses in the industry at Sh1.89 billion, followed by Dyer &Blair at Sh500 million and SIB at Sh476.7 million. The bulk of the outgoings were filed under direct expenses, without a breakdown of the specific items that drove the costs up this year.
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