CBK (Central Bank of Kenya) received bids worth KSh 92.6 billion at the first November Treasury Bonds Auction, out of KSh 40 billion on offer, a performance rate of 232.3%. This is as investors in the fixed income market scrambled for the lucrative papers that were offering returns of 12% for the 20-year bond and 13.9% for the 15-year reopened treasury bond that matures on April 6th 2032.
Investment bankers had forecast overwhelming subscriptions for the two papers, given the steady decline in bond yields, as well as recent auction trends. The huge investor demand for these bonds have been attributed to their comparably higher coupon rates.
The CBK rejected nearly half of the all the subscriptions received and ended up accepting bids worth KSh 52.8 Billion.
CBK auction results shows that the 15-year t-bond was the most attractive with bids worth KSh 57.6 billion received while the state fiscal agent accepted bids worth KSh33.3 billion, an oversubscription of 143.9%.
The re-opened 20-year t-bond received bids worth KSh 35.3 billion and accepted KSh 19.4 billion, a performance rate of 88.31%
This is the first time in the month of November that the CBK is seeking cash for budgetary support, from the domestic money market.
CBK Statistics on Domestic Debt
Latest figures from the CBK weekly bulletin shows that 81.64% of the Government’s Domestic Debt is locked in Treasury Bonds or KSh 5.5 trillion as at 24th October 2025. This is against Kenya’s overall domestic debt of KSh 6.7 trillion.
Kenya’s Fiscal Update as at close of September 2025 shows that domestic borrowing in the month was KSh 65.92 billion against external loans and grants of KSh 14.03 billion. The Public Debt Service obligation stood at KSh123.6 billion.
According to a report by the parliamentary public debt and privatization committee, the 2025/26 public debt servicing is projected at KSh 1.9 trillion-comprising KSh 1.3 trillion (69%) in domestic debt and KSh 586.4 billion (31%) in external debt.
This reflects a 7% decrease (KSh 140.67 billion) from the FY 2024/25 estimate of KSh 2.04 trillion.
Despite this temporary decline, debt service obligations have been on an upward trajectory, driven by rising debt stock, fluctuating interest rates, and exchange rate volatility.
As such, the committee report said the projected KSh 1.9 trillion marks the lowest debt servicing cost over the medium term-offering a narrow window of fiscal relief that should be used prudently to enhance budget efficiency, reduce future financing needs, and reorient spending toward growth-enhancing investments.
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