BK Group Plc shareholders on Friday, May 22, approved key resolutions including higher dividends payout, as the financial institution marked 60 years since the establishment of Bank of Kigali and outlined expansion plans anchored on financial inclusion, digital transformation, and long-term investment growth.

It was during the Group’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Kigali. It brought together shareholders, board members, regulators, partners, and investors, and was followed by an investor forum focused on Rwanda’s investment and capital markets landscape.

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Six decades of growth

Speaking at the meeting, BK Group Plc Board Chairperson Jean Philippe Prosper said the institution has evolved from a single commercial bank founded in 1966 into what he described as "Rwanda’s integrated financial ecosystem.”

The bank started with one branch and now operates 67 branches across the country.

"Sixty years ago, Bank of Kigali opened its doors with a mandate to mobilise savings, extend credit, and support Rwanda’s economic development. Six decades later, that mandate has not changed, but the institution has grown far beyond what its founders could have imagined,” he stated.

"Today, BK Group is a multi-subsidiary financial ecosystem encompassing commercial banking, investment banking, insurance, financial technology, and community investment.”

BK Group currently comprises Bank of Kigali, BK Capital, BK General Insurance, BK Tech House, and BK Foundation.

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Strong 2025 performance

The Group posted strong growth across its businesses during the 2025 financial year.

Net profit rose by 20.9 per cent to Rwf110 billion, return on equity strengthened to 22.9 per cent, while total assets increased by 15.8 per cent to Rwf2.9 trillion.

"These are not simply good numbers. They are the product of consistent disciplined execution across every entity of the Group,” Prosper told shareholders.

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At Bank of Kigali, the loan book expanded by 16.1 per cent while maintaining a non-performing loan ratio of 2.9 per cent, below the sector average.

The SME portfolio increased from 13.6 per cent to 19.8 per cent of the loan book, while agricultural lending reached Rwf93.4 billion — four times the sector average.

BK Capital more than doubled its assets under management to Rwf154.7 billion, while BK General Insurance posted gross written premiums of Rwf19 billion and net profit of Rwf4.7 billion.

BK Tech House processed Rwf85.8 billion in payment collections across 6.6 million transactions, serving 5.7 million unique digital users.

BK Foundation channelled nearly Rwf4 billion into various interventions, including agriculture support, environmental programmes, and education, including 620 scholarships.

Financial inclusion and investor confidence

Prosper said financial inclusion remains central to BK Group’s business strategy and national development role.

"Financial inclusion is where BK Group’s commercial ambitions and national responsibilities converge most visibly,” he said.

He highlighted programmes such as Bigereho na BK, SME financing, agricultural lending, and home equity products as initiatives helping expand access to financial services among women, youth, and rural entrepreneurs.

"Inclusion is not charity. It is strategy,” Prosper said. "Every farmer we onboard on our digital channels, every youth we upskill, every SME we finance is a customer deepened, a relationship expanded, and a data asset developed. Prosperity beyond numbers is not a slogan. It is a business model.”

BK Group also pointed to strong investor confidence, with the company’s share price on the Rwanda Stock Exchange rising from Rwf125 during its initial public offering in 2012 to Rwf600 by mid-May 2026, meaning its value more than quadrupled during that period.

"When I joined BK Group as chairman in June 2023, the share price was around Rwf300. It has since doubled, as you may have noted, without a single rights issue or capital call on shareholders,” Prosper said.

Higher dividend approved

Shareholders approved the Board’s recommendation of a final dividend of Rwf41.84 per share for the 2025 financial year, bringing the total dividend payout to Rwf53.04 per share — an 80 per cent increase compared to the previous year.

"This is not a one-off gesture. It is a recalibration of how BK Group thinks about returning capital to those who own it,” Prosper said.

"You have been patient partners in this institution’s growth. It is right that we share in its returns, not symbolically but materially.”

Shareholders express confidence

Shareholders welcomed the Group’s growth trajectory and rising returns.

Marie Rose Muhorakeye, a Gasabo District resident, said she initially bought 1,000 BK shares during the bank’s 2012 public offering at Rwf125 per share and has since increased her holdings to 4,200 shares.

"The major change I have seen is the steady increase in the share value, which has now reached Rwf600. The dividends have also continued to grow over the years,” she said.

Muhorakeye said the consistent dividend payments and confidence in the institution’s management motivated her to continue investing in BK shares, including reinvesting her 2025 dividends.

Another shareholder, Jean Damascene Bizimana from Gicumbi District, said he plans to increase his investment from 200 shares to at least 1,000 shares as the Group continues to expand.

"My target is to increase my shares because the value of the bank keeps growing, which also means growing profits,” he said.

Expansion plans for 2026

Looking ahead, BK Group announced plans to launch Rwanda’s first structured institutional private equity fund through a joint venture with Advanced Finance and Investment Group.

The fund is expected to support medium-sized enterprises considered too large for microfinance institutions but not yet ready for public capital markets.

BK Foundation also plans to expand its youth empowerment programmes through the Bloom Africa initiative in partnership with World Vision, targeting 8,000 young people and extending scholarship programmes into sports and creative industries.

Prosper said BK Group remains focused on building an institution capable of enduring for decades to come.

"Today, this institution is a group, and that group is not finished. We have the capital, the capabilities, the digital infrastructure, and most importantly, the trust of Rwandans to build something that endures for another 60 years,” he said.

"What we owe this country and you as shareholders is the courage and discipline to pursue that ambition without compromise.”