CBK attracts Sh51.8bn in Treasury bills bids against Sh28bn offer

The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) received bids worth Sh51.86 billion for Treasury bills valued at Sh28 billion, representing an oversubscription of 185.2 per cent in its latest auction.

The auction, conducted on October 29, covered 91-day, 182-day and 364-day Treasury bills with a value date of November 2, 2026. It attracted strong demand for the shortest-term securities, with investors submitting bids worth Sh40.63 billion against an offer of Sh8 billion.

According to results released by the Central Bank, the 91-day Treasury bill recorded a performance rate of 507.9 per cent, with Sh40.56 billion accepted against the Sh8 billion initially offered.

The 182-day Treasury bill attracted bids worth Sh5.32 billion against an offer of Sh10 billion, translating into a performance rate of 53.17 per cent.

Meanwhile, the 364-day Treasury bill received bids worth Sh5.91 billion against an offer of Sh10 billion, representing a performance rate of 59.07 per cent.

Overall, the CBK accepted Sh51.69 billion in bids across the three instruments, significantly exceeding the initial combined offer of Sh28 billion.

The strong performance was largely driven by demand for the 91-day paper, which accounted for the biggest share of the funds received during the auction.

Of the total accepted bids, Sh33.58 billion came from competitive bids, while Sh18.10 billion was submitted through non-competitive bids.

Competitive bids allow investors to specify the interest rate they are willing to accept, while non-competitive investors receive the weighted average rate determined by successful competitive bids.

The average interest rates on accepted bids remained relatively stable across all three maturities, with marginal movements compared with the previous auction.

The 91-day Treasury bill recorded an accepted weighted average interest rate of 8.7498 per cent, compared with 8.7478 per cent in the previous auction, representing an increase of 0.002 percentage points.

For the 182-day paper, the rate declined slightly to 8.8508 per cent from 8.8591 per cent, while the 364-day instrument increased to 9.0288 per cent from 9.0267 per cent.

The 364-day Treasury bill continued to offer the highest return among the three instruments, followed by the 182-day and 91-day papers.

The CBK's results also showed that the accepted amounts included Sh40.74 billion allocated towards refinancing maturing obligations, while Sh16.84 billion was recorded under new borrowing or net repayment for the 91-day and 364-day instruments.

The securities have different maturity dates, with the 91-day paper due on February 1, 2027, the 182-day instrument on May 3, 2027, and the 364-day paper on November 1, 2027.

The Central Bank has announced another Treasury bill auction involving the three maturities, with a combined offer of Sh28 billion.

The next auction will involve issues 2707/091, 2681/182 and 2636/364, dated November 9, 2026.

Investors have until 2 pm on Thursday, November 5, 2026, to submit their bids electronically through the DhowCSD platform or Treasury Mobile Direct.

Successful bidders are required to make payments through the Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) system, with funds expected to reach the Central Bank by 2 pm on Monday, November 9.

The CBK has maintained a minimum investment requirement of Sh50,000 for non-competitive bids and Sh2 million for competitive bids.

Non-competitive bids are capped at Sh50 million per investor account for each tenor, although the restriction does not apply to state corporations, public universities and semi-autonomous government agencies.

The bank also reminded investors that only individuals and institutions with active Central Depository System (CSD) accounts are eligible to participate in the auction.

The CBK further stated that the actual amount raised would depend on the National Treasury's immediate liquidity requirements, adding that it reserves the right to accept or reject bids, either partially or fully, without providing reasons.