I&M Bank Brings Its MTN to the NSE as Corporate Debt Appetite Grows

Trading has started on I&M Bank’s first listed medium-term note at the Nairobi Securities Exchange, extending a recent pickup in corporate fundraising activity through Kenya’s bond market.

The lender moved the Kenya shilling-denominated instrument onto the exchange’s fixed income segment after a public sale that drew demand well above the amount initially offered. Investor applications reached Sh23.2 billion against a planned Sh10 billion raise.

With the note now admitted for secondary market dealing, buyers and sellers can trade the security through the NSE at minimum bids of Sh50,000. The listing gives investors an exit route that was previously unavailable during the primary offer phase and introduces market-based pricing once trading volumes build.

Corporate issuers have returned to debt markets more aggressively over the past year as banks, telecommunications firms and housing financiers seek longer-duration funding. That activity has widened the range of tradable securities available outside government paper, particularly for pension funds, asset managers and high-net-worth investors searching for yield stability.

I&M says the programme forms part of its broader capital planning framework under the group’s iMara 3.0 strategy. The bank is targeting expansion across business lending, SME financing and retail operations, areas that typically require stable funding over longer horizons.

The listing also arrives during a period of renewed institutional confidence in Kenya’s capital markets after several years in which corporate bond issuance slowed considerably. Recent transactions from Safaricom, East African Breweries and Kenya Mortgage Refinancing Company have helped revive activity on the exchange’s debt segment.

Speaking during the NSE listing ceremony, I&M Group Executive Director Sarit Shah said the admission of the notes into the public market would improve tradability and widen investor participation. Exchange-based trading also allows investors to respond more quickly to changes in interest rates and liquidity conditions.

NSE Chief Executive Officer Frank Mwiti said the market has continued to attract established issuers seeking alternatives to conventional financing channels. According to the exchange, deeper corporate debt participation is gradually strengthening long-term capital formation while expanding product diversity within the local market.

Attention is now likely to shift toward trading performance and whether future tranches under the programme maintain similar levels of investor demand. Activity in the secondary market will offer an early indication of how strongly investors continue to price corporate risk amid changing monetary conditions.

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