Nearly a third of bank accounts have been closed for being inactive, freezing billions of shillings in the wake of data clean-up.
Data from the Kenya Deposit Insurance Corporation (KDIC) shows that the number of accounts fell from 112.5 million in June 2024 to 78.7 million in June 2025, a difference of 33.8 million, following what lenders described as a “data clean-up exercise.”
The amount held in dormant accounts could run into billions of shillings.
For instance, a Sh1000 balance in each of the dropped accounts would easily add up to Sh33.8 billion, pointing to the volume of idle savings locked away in dormant accounts.
Banks typically designate bank accounts as inactive after 6–12 months of no customer-initiated transactions, irrespective of deposits flowing, and become dormant after one year or more of inactivity.
Lenders then impose restrictions on dormant accounts, including stopping interest earnings, limiting withdrawals, and charging maintenance fees.
Dormancy acts as a safeguard against identity theft and unauthorised access to the idle funds.
