More Saccos hit the Billion-Mark in Members’ Savings, SASRA Report.
Savings and Credit Co-operative Societies (Saccos) engaged in deposit-taking with members’ savings above the Ksh 1 billion level has increased. According to the latest supervision report by the Sacco Societies Regulatory Authority (SASRA), DT Saccos that have joined this exclusive billionaires club include Elimu Sacco, Defence Sacco, Faridi Sacco based in Busia, and Daima Sacco in Embu.
“We have made a deliberate effort to do aggressive deposit mobilization among our membership. This is through constant improvement in the quality of our services, including access to more loan products and establishment of a mobile phone platform to ensure our members experience more convenience. All these efforts have boosted the level of confidence among our members and seen them increase their savings with the Sacco,” said Angela Nyanjong, Elimu Sacco’s Chief Executive Officer.
She added that with increased member deposits, Elimu Sacco now has more funds to lend to members without resorting to credit from commercial banks and other lenders.
“We also have more funds that we can use to invest with the increased pool of funds also positively impacting our capital and asset base,” said Nyanjong.
According to SASRA, Elimu Sacco saw its members’ savings increase from Ksh 0.97 billion in 2021 to Ksh 1.04 billion in 2022, while its balance sheet size increased from Ksh 1.31 billion in 2021 to Ksh 1.38 billion in 2022.
Defence Sacco saw its members’ savings grow significantly from KSh 0.93 billion in 2021 to KSh 2.29 billion in 2022. Faridi Sacco increased its deposit liabilities from KSh 0.91 billion in 2021 to KSh 1.01 billion in 2022. Daima Sacco, also a new entry into the billionaires’ club, increased its deposit liabilities from KSh 0.90 billion in 2021 to KSh 1.04 billion in 2022.
The Sacco Act and other regulations have been put in place to safeguard the savings of Sacco members, ensuring their safety and accessibility whenever they need them.
In addition, and just like any other deposit-taking financial credit institution, members’ savings or Sacco’s deposit liabilities are the largest source of funding for Sacco assets, especially their loan portfolios.
An analysis by SASRA indicates that in 2022, the number of DT-Saccos with members’ savings or deposit liabilities above Ksh 5 Billion increased to 30-DT Saccos in 2022 compared to 26-DT-Saccos with similar deposit liabilities in 2021.
The number of DT-Saccos with members’ deposits ranging between Ksh 1 Billion and Ksh 5 Billion, on the other hand, remained static at 51-DT-Saccos in 2022 following the graduation of four (4) DT-Saccos whose deposit liabilities crossed the KSh 1 Billion mark in 2022.
The Latest data also shows that DT Saccos, which saw their members’ savings rise above KSh 5 billion, increased from 28 in 2021 to 32 in 2022.
The new entries to this higher category include Magereza Sacco, Solution Sacco, Ollin Sacco, and Winas Sacco.
The top 10 DT Saccos with the largest members’ savings include Mwalimu National KSh 47.29 billion, Stima DT Sacco KSh 39.43 billion, Kenya National Police DT Sacco KSh 28.89 billion, Harambee DT Sacco KSh 23.70 billion, Afya Sacco KSh 15.63 billion, Unaitas Sacco KSh 11.02 billion, Imarisha Sacco KSh 14.08 billion, UN Sacco KSh 12.56 billion and Ukulima DT Sacco with total deposits of KSh 10.25 billion.
289-regulated Saccos reported positive growth rates in their individual deposits, while the remaining 70- 70-regulated Saccos reported negative growth rates in their individual deposit liabilities.
The negative growth rates in the deposit liabilities are evidenced by withdrawals by membership as well as the offsetting of deposits towards loan repayments upon defaults.
