Central Bank of Kenya blacklists bank officials linked to fallen banks

The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) has ‘blacklisted’ former senior executives of failed banks, making it hard for them to take up managerial positions in other banks.

The move has resulted in about 10 former Chase Bank executives and at least one Dubai Bank manager being denied clearance by the regulator.

Some of the former Chase Bank staff had sought employment at Sidian and Gulf African banks.

The CBK’s action is in line with prudential guidelines that require every bank to seek clearance from the regulator upon retaining services of any person at a senior level.

Gulf African Bank yesterday confirmed that two of its senior staff who worked at Chase Bank have not received CBK clearance according to a local business daily.

“They are yet to get the clearance, and meanwhile we have not granted them any approval power,” Mr Abdalla Abdulkhalik, the CEO said.

CBK move comes weeks after it finally approved Mauritian lender SBM Holdings to take over the troubled Chase Bank which was placed under receivership in April 2016 after it encountered liquidity problems, occasioned by mismanagement by its top officials.

CBK declined to shed further light on the blacklisting of these officials instead asking the media to direct their queries to the commercial banks involved “as they would be the applicants in this process.”

“This is not information we are not at liberty to disclose,” said CBK in the statement.

The CBK prudential Guidelines stipulated under the Banking Act sets out the criteria for determining professional and moral suitability of persons in control of financial institutions.

The regulations requires all financial institutions to submit a ‘Fit and Proper’ filled by all new employees joining the firm at the management level to the CBK for assessment and approval.

The prudential guidelines bar senior officials from taking up their positions prior to being cleared by the Central Bank.