The Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) closed the year ended December 31, 2025, on a strong bullish note, recording broad-based gains across all major market indicators as renewed investor confidence drove higher trading activity.
According to the NSE Market Report, “the Bourse wrapped up year 2025 in a bullish territory, with gains registered across all key market indicators,” underscoring what turned out to be one of the exchange’s strongest performances in recent years.
The benchmark NSE 20 Share Index led the rally, surging 56.13 per cent to close the year at 3,139.19 points, while the NSE All Share Index (NASI) rose 51.10 per cent to 186.58 points, reflecting sustained price gains across listed stocks.
The momentum extended to tradable indices, with the float-adjusted NSE 25 and NSE 10 indices gaining 49.78 per cent and 50.90 per cent, respectively, compared to 2024. The NSE noted that these results “highlighted significant opportunities in both the spot and derivatives market within the year.”
Driven by the strong rally, equity market activity rose sharply, with shares worth Sh145 billion changing hands during the year, up from Sh105 billion in 2024.
This represented a 37.28 per cent increase in equity trading activity, pointing to heightened participation by both local and foreign investors.
The fixed income market posted a historic performance, with bond turnover reaching an all-time high of Sh2.7 trillion, a 75.50 per cent jump from Sh1.5 trillion recorded the previous year.
The exchange attributed the growth to “increased participation, yield compression, and strong secondary market demand.”
Activity in the derivatives market also gathered pace, with contracts valued at Sh257 million traded in 2025 compared to Sh170 million in 2024.
Sectoral performance showed banking and telecommunications stocks dominating market turnover. The banking sector accounted for Sh70 billion, representing 48.25 per cent of total equity traded value.
KCB Group emerged as the most actively traded banking counter, with 530 million shares worth Sh26 billion, while Equity Group recorded trades valued at Sh19.9 billion.
Safaricom Plc led the telecommunications sector, moving 1.9 billion shares worth Sh46 billion, equivalent to 31.74 per cent of total market turnover, and closing the year at Sh28.35. Other sectors also posted solid activity, with East African Breweries Plc leading manufacturing trades and Kenya Power and KenGen anchoring activity in the energy sector.
Overall, the NSE said the 2025 performance reflected “strong participation across equities, fixed income and derivatives markets,” positioning the bourse for continued growth going into the new year.
