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The Kenya Bankers Association (KBA) has refuted claims that lenders have been asked by the Central Bank of Kenya(CBK)to ration dollar supply in the market.
This follows a publication on a local news oulet that alleged that CBK had directed commercial banks to ration dollars following a shortage of the US currency in the market.
The banking lobby in a statement assured that the market is well balanced in terms of supply and demand of dollars.
“The situation at the individual bank level may differ leading to some banks experiencing a shortage and therefore taking decisions to help service their customers to the best of their ability,” said KBA CEO, Habil Olaka in the statement.
According to KBA, the strong demand for dollars being felt in the market may be attributed to elevated demand over the last month as companies remit dividends and meet their overseas supplier obligations in the wake of the strong post Covid – 19 recovery .
The lobby noted that the supply of foreign currency continues to grow supported by receipts from the country’s main exports and strong remittances inflows as evidenced by the CBK’s monthly remittance report.
Olaka assured Kenyans that the industry is in constant discussion with the Central Bank to ensure that the current imbalances are addressed as quickly as possible to bring the market back to normalcy.
The US dollar demand by importers has been rising since the beginning of the year, pushing the shilling to the lowest levels ever.
On Wednesday, the shilling hit a new low of 115.90 against the greenback.
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