EFFECT OF CREDIT RISK MANAGEMENT ON FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE OF COMMERCIAL BANKS IN KENYA

Abstract

The overall goal of the research was to establish effect of credit risk management on financial performance of commercial banks in Mombasa County. Credit risk has always been a concern not only to bankers but also to the entire business world because of the dangers or risks business partners may be exposed as a result of a failure by trading partners to meet their obligations on due date. The study adopted a descriptive survey designs because it provided a clear outcome and the characteristics associated with it at a specific point in time. The target population was all the 38 commercial banks in Kenya that were operational. The study made use of secondary data, which was obtained from the financial statements of commercial banks in Kenya and from Central Bank of Kenya’s bank supervision reports. The study made use of a data extraction tool to collect secondary data. In the analysis of data, the study used both inferential and descriptive statistics and all statistical analysis were carried out using STATA version 14. Descriptive statistics comprised of frequency distributions, percentages, mean, variances and standard deviation. On the other hand, inferential statistics was carried out using regression analysis, which was either fixed effect or random effects depending on the results from Hausman test. The study found that concentration risk management has a significant effect on the financial performance of commercial banks in Kenya. The study also found that liquidity risk management has a significant effect on financial performance of commercial banks in Kenya. The study revealed that default risk has a negative and significant effect on the financial performance of commercial banks in Kenya. The study further established that institutional risk management has a significant effect on financial performance of commercial banks in Kenya. The study concluded that the management of commercial banks in Kenya should focus on the reduction of the a verage collection period. In addition, commercial banks in Kenya should focus on the management of liquidity risk so as to improve the financial performance of commercial banks in Kenya. Liquidity risk can also be managed by improving risk reporting abilities, improving company cash flow management, improving balance sheet management and also by improving risk metrics and monitoring processes. Further, the management of commercial banks in Kenya should focus on reducing non-performing loans by improving credit appraisal process and by improving institutional credit policy. Also, the management of commercial banks in Kenya should focus on improving capital adequacy by developing strategies to increase income and reduce inventory and cost of service delivery. Key Words: Concentration Risk, Institutional Risk, Liquidity Risk, Default Risk Management CITATION: Yaa, D. S., & Mwanzia, S. (2022). Effect of credit risk management on financial performance of commercial banks in Kenya. The Strategic Journal of Business & Change Management, 9 (4), 383 - 402.