Kenya’s Collective Investment Schemes (CIS) recorded strong performance in Q1’ 2025, with total assets under management increasing by 28.0% to hit KES 496.2 billion from Kshs. 389.2 billion at the end of Q4’ 2024, marking the strongest quarterly increase in recent years, showing a renewed confidence in the capital markets. This sharp growth was attributed to existing funds gaining traction, new funds entering the market, and an aggressive marketing push by fund managers.
The top five fund managers Sanlam, CIC, Standard Investment, NCBA, and Britam now account for 64.3% of the market. Sanlam came first with assets worth KES. 90.2 billion under management, outdoing CIC, Standard Investment and NCBA at 87.5 billion, 56.8 billion and 50.0 billion respectively
Money Market Funds remains to be the most the preferred option for most investors, taking up 64.0% of the total AUM, due to their low risk nature. Fixed Income Funds come second a steadily growing their share of the pie. They now represent 17.5% of total assets, with Fixed income fund coming at 17.3% representing 85.7 billion
Meanwhile, Equity and Balanced Funds still lag behind, jointly making up 0.8% of the total market. This shows that most investors are still cautious, favoring income-generating options over more volatile equity products.
Notably, Foreign-currency funds, especially those denominated in US dollars, are also gaining popularity. These funds saw a 28.0% jump in AUM during the quarter, reaching KES 53.6 billion from 41.7 billion in Q’4 2024 reflecting growing demand among Kenyans for currency diversification and access to offshore markets.
Investor numbers are also climbing. As of March 2025, over 2.0 million people invested in CIS, up from 1.1 million in March 2025. Showing a growing interest in structured investment products and a shift toward more deliberate wealth building habits.
Generally, sector that is growing fast and gradually attracting in a broader base of investors and With the right regulatory support and continued investor education, CIS are well-positioned to play an even bigger role in Kenya’s financial future.
