Equity Group Holdings staff count rose worth by 410 employees in the three months to June 2026, even as more of its operations shift to digital platforms.
The group’s staff count rose to 14,265 in June 2026 from 13,855 in March, with its unit in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) posting the largest growth in employee count.
Equity’s employee numbers have been rising since September 2025 after dropping for three quarters in a row. The group had 12,159 staff as of September 2025.
The drop in staff headcount coincided with an ethics audit on its staff. The fresh growth in staff numbers suggests that Equity is replenishing its workforce.
This is the highest staff number the group has held despite the bulk of its transactions, 98.3 percent, occurring outside branches.
The higher staff numbers signal the need for human skills to assist at the back end of automated processes.
“Digital adoption continues to accelerate across the Group, with 98.3 percent of all transactions now occurring outside branches and 89.7 percent processed through digital platforms,” said the group's chief executive, James Mwangi.
“These trends highlight customers’ growing preference for Equity’s digital ecosystem and the reliability of its technology infrastructure.”
The group’s staff costs grew by 35 percent in the 12 months to June 2026 to Sh23.8 billion, after the staff count increased by 1,352 in the period.
The group also increased the pay package of its staff during the third quarter of last year to retain talent and match its peers' remuneration packages.
The remuneration package linked employees' pay with the lender's performance in what was dubbed a shared prosperity policy, pledging to pay its staff 15 percent of its net revenues.
The group’s net profit rose by 32 percent to Sh43.7 billion in the six months to June 2026, signalling a bumper bonus for staff.
Equity Group operates in six countries including Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, DRC, South Sudan and Rwanda. The DRC reported the highest increase in staff numbers, adding 253 to 3,560 despite the number of branches operating in the mineral-rich country remaining flat at 81 over the same period.
Equity has disclosed plans to open insurance operations in DRC, with its shareholders approving plans to spend Sh3.47 billion to open life and general insurance units in the country that early this year suffered from an Ebola outbreak.
The number of employees in Kenya, including those in non-banking subsidiaries such as Equity Foundation, insurance and investment banking, increased by 34 to 7,505.
Equity also disclosed it had a new group director in charge of human resources, James Muhia, who replaced David Ssegawa in its executive suite.
The new hires will give hope to fresh graduates with ambitions of working in the banking sector, whose shift to digital banking has seen some lenders report annual job cuts.
Standard Chartered Bank Kenya last year saw its workforce dip below the 1,000 mark to 942 following an 11-year downsizing programme attributable to the shift to digital banking.
Absa Bank early this year spent Sh717 million to let go of 82 employees in a voluntary early retirement package that was attributed to the digital shift.
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