In a bid to increase its visibility in the local market, Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB) has embarked on a rigorous promotion of sporting activities, the latest of which was a golf tournament last Saturday.

According to Kepha Bosire, the bank’s public affairs and communication manager, they are looking at events that have the ability to pull in the masses, thus ensuring the bank gets more visibility. Apart from the golf tournament (the second of its kind), KCB is currently also sponsoring the Gorilla Mountain Rally.

“Sponsoring sporting activities gives us the opportunity to interact with the stakeholders and customers while we promote our brand,” Bosire said.

He further pointed out that it was important for the bank to ensure that the local market gets to hear, know and feel the presence of the bank, which started its operations in the country nine months ago.

He also remarked that it is common practice around the world for major companies to get involved in sports through sponsoring. “Look for instance at Barclays Bank, which supports the English Premier league because its target is the football supporters,” Bosire said.

Moreover, the bank has a legacy of supporting sports; in Kenya, it sponsors rugby, volleyball, basketball and football.

The current promotion of sporting activities comes at the time when KCB has registered losses for the first quarter on the Rwandan market.

However, Bosire is unfazed by this situation. “We are only nine months into a market in which there have been big players, so we think to be able to make real profit at least in three years time,” he said, stressing that it takes time for any company in a new market to make profit.

He further emphasized that sports sponsorship has nothing to do with the losses declared during the last quarter. He was in fact optimistic that KCB would improve its performance during the next financial year.

While penetrating a market such as Rwanda, where prospective clients tend to be conservative, is usually an uphill battle, KCB Rwanda seems to be progressing well, having so far 5,000 accounts.

“We are making fantastic progress,” Bosire indicated, adding that the bank is now expanding its operations across the country. “We already have a branch in Gisenyi, which in its first months has registered 500 accounts,” Bosire said. Moreover, the National Bank (BNR) has approved two other branches in Nyabugogo and Kimironko which are still under construction, and the Remera branch is due to be opened on Tuesday.

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