Standard Chartered Bank Kenya has dropped out of the country’s Tier 1 banking category after its market size index fell below the Central Bank of Kenya’s threshold, a development that has drawn sharp reactions from some Kenyans who say they remember feeling overlooked by the lender.
The bank’s market size index stood at 4.5 percent in 2025, down from 5.4 percent in 2024. Under the CBK classification, banks with a market size index of at least five percent are placed in the large Tier 1 category.
Standard Chartered’s decline below that mark means it has been moved into the medium-sized Tier 2 group.
The change leaves eight banks in the country’s top category, with Standard Chartered now ranked ninth. KCB remains the largest bank, followed by Equity Bank, Co-operative Bank, NCBA, Absa Bank Kenya, Stanbic Bank Kenya, I&M Bank and Diamond Trust Bank.
Standard Chartered’s net assets were reported at about Sh364.5 billion, while its deposits stood at approximately Sh284.7 billion.
The figures underline that the bank remains a major financial institution despite losing its position in the top banking tier.
The development caught the attention of Wamuyu Wamuyu, who shared a short message reflecting on experiences of being underestimated and treated as though they had little value.
She linked those feelings to Standard Chartered’s latest ranking and ended her message with a sarcastic call to celebrate what she described as the bank’s poor decisions.
Her post struck a nerve because some Kenyans responded by sharing their own memories of dealing with the bank, particularly during periods when they had limited financial resources.
One commenter recalled being turned away in 2006 because his salary as a security guard did not meet the bank’s minimum requirements.
Another remembered being advised to look elsewhere after making an inquiry in the 1990s.
A mother also shared a memory of being asked to maintain a balance that was, at the time, far beyond what she could comfortably afford.
The accounts do not establish that those individual experiences contributed to Standard Chartered falling out of Tier 1.
The CBK ranking is based on the size of a bank within the industry and does not measure customer satisfaction, treatment of low-income customers or public perception.
However, the stories explain why the latest ranking has attracted attention beyond the banking industry.
For some customers, the issue is not simply that Standard Chartered has moved from one category to another. It is about how they remember being treated when they had less money and fewer financial options.
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