Customers queue at an Equity ATM in Nairobi. PHOTO/FILE 
Summary
- Equity Bank is closing some of its ATMs as the lender shifts customers to mobile and agency banking.
- The bank has so far closed 11 ATM lobbies, each of which had multiple cash dispensing machines.
- Kenyan banks have turned to job cuts, branch closures and deploying technology to cut costs and adapt to the rate caps era.
Equity Bank has
started closing some of its automated teller machines (ATMs) as the
lender shifts customers to alternative channels such as agency and
mobile banking in a fresh cost-cutting strategy.
Kenya’s biggest bank by customer numbers told the Business Daily it has so far closed 11 ATM lobbies, each of which had multiple cash dispensing machines.
Equity’s
chief executive James Mwangi reckoned that while ATMs require upfront
capital investments to acquire the machines and lease space yet
depreciate at 20 per cent annually, agency and mobile banking have no
such capital commitments.
He
also added that the shift is informed by evolving preferences of its
9.59 million customers who want to do their banking on the go through
mobile phones, or access banking within their neighbourbood via agents.
“Last
year Equity conducted a survey and the findings were customers prefer
self-service digital banking and have a higher preference for
convenience in payment platforms and access to loans,” said Mr Mwangi in
an interview.
It had 29,561 agents and 1.4 million Equitel subscribers in the period under review.
One
in every five ATMs in Kenya belongs to Equity Bank, thanks to an
aggressive expansion strategy. It had 520 ATMs as at December 2016 when
the total industry count was 2,656 machines, according to Central Bank
of Kenya data.
Kenyan banks have turned to job cuts, branch closures and deploying technology to cut costs and adapt to the rate caps era.
Equity’s rivals that have closed or plan to close branches include Barclays
(seven), StanChart
(four), Bank of Africa (12) and Ecobank (nine).
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