Equity surged while Absa slipped in H1 2026, showing digital banking does not make every bank grow the same way

Kenya's banks are becoming more digital.

Their financial results are not moving in one direction.

Equity Group reported KSh 45.5 billion in profit after tax for the first half of 2026, up 32% year on year.

Absa Bank Kenya reported KSh 10.5 billion, down 10% from KSh 11.7 billion in the comparable period.

Both banks continue to invest in digital channels.

Both have growing customer bases and increasingly mobile transaction behaviour.

The very different profit outcomes are a useful reminder that digital banking is an operating model, not a magic growth button.

Equity's H1 was a strong growth story

Equity's half-year numbers were broad-based.

Profit after tax rose 32%.

Profit before tax climbed 39% to KSh 57.8 billion.

Total income increased to roughly KSh 124.9 billion.

Customer deposits grew to about KSh 1.59 trillion.

The balance sheet expanded to roughly KSh 2.16 trillion in total assets.

The group also reported that 98.3% of transactions were happening outside branches, with 89.7% processed through digital channels.

Those digital numbers are important because they show how little of modern banking now depends on a customer walking into a branch.

Absa's story is more mixed

Absa Bank Kenya also grew its balance sheet.

Customer assets rose to roughly KSh 329.9 billion.

Customer deposits increased to about KSh 380.7 billion.

Total assets reached about KSh 558.1 billion.

The bank also increased its interim dividend to KSh 0.50 per share from KSh 0.20.

But profitability moved in the opposite direction.

Profit after tax fell 10% to KSh 10.5 billion.

Total revenue declined 7% to about KSh 29.3 billion.

Net interest income and non-funded income were both lower year on year.

That is not a weak bank story in the simplistic sense.

It is a reminder that a bank can grow deposits and assets while facing revenue and earnings pressure in the same period.

Digital migration lowers some costs, but it cannot control the economy

Moving transactions to mobile and online channels can reduce branch dependence and improve customer convenience.

It can also create more opportunities for cross-selling.

But bank profits still depend on much more:

• Interest rates
• Credit quality
• Loan growth
• Funding costs
• Foreign exchange
• Fee income
• Regulatory changes
• Provisioning
• Operating expenses

Two banks can both have excellent mobile apps and still produce very different earnings.

That is why investors should be cautious when a bank describes every good number as a result of digital transformation.

Equity's digital scale is becoming structural

When nearly nine out of ten transactions are digital, the channel is no longer an alternative.

It is the bank.

That changes where competitive advantage comes from.

Equity can use transaction data, mobile distribution and ecosystem products across several markets.

It also means technology reliability becomes a core banking risk.

An outage is no longer an inconvenience affecting a side channel.

It can affect the primary way customers access money.

Absa's dividend tells another story

A lower half-year profit did not stop Absa from raising its interim dividend.

That suggests management and the board still see capital generation and balance-sheet strength as sufficient for a higher distribution.

For shareholders, that can be attractive.

For analysts, it raises a more useful question than the headline profit number:

Can revenue growth recover while the bank continues expanding assets and deposits?

The second half will matter.

Kenya's banks are competing on more than apps

Digital banking has become table stakes.

Customers expect:

• Instant transfers
• Mobile loans
• Card controls
• Bill payments
• Digital statements
• Fast onboarding
• Reliable support

The competitive edge increasingly comes from how those tools connect to pricing, credit decisions, customer service and ecosystem reach.

Equity's regional scale gives it one kind of advantage.

Absa's corporate and affluent banking strengths give it another.

The numbers should be read through those different business models.

What customers should take from the numbers

Most customers do not choose a bank because of half-year profit.

They feel strategy through prices, app reliability, credit availability, branch service and how quickly problems are resolved.

Strong earnings can fund better technology and expansion.

They can also coexist with poor customer experiences if execution is weak.

The useful connection between financial results and digital banking is therefore indirect.

A bank with strong profitability has more room to invest, but the customer still needs to see that investment appear in faster systems, clearer pricing and better service.

The tecMAMBO take

The most interesting thing about Equity and Absa's H1 results is that they resist an easy technology headline.

Yes, banking is becoming overwhelmingly digital.

No, that does not make profitability automatic.

Equity's H1 was a strong growth period.

Absa's was more mixed, with balance-sheet growth and a higher dividend alongside weaker earnings.

The lesson for customers and investors is the same.

A great app matters.

The economics behind the app matter more.