Standard Chartered Bank Kenya has blocked a KSh 7.09 billion payout to 629 former employees after obtaining a court order halting enforcement of a tribunal’s ruling.
The decision comes after the Retirement Benefits Appeals Tribunal (RBAT) recently ordered the bank and its pension trustees to pay the retirees their revised benefits. The retirees, some of whom left as early as 1994 under a Voluntary Early Retirement Scheme, argued that their pensions were under-calculated and that a KSh 1.1 billion surplus in the fund was misused.
The total award, including legal costs, is approximately KSh 7.79 billion.
The bank responded by filing a judicial review at the High Court and secured an injunction. The matter is scheduled for hearing on September 9, 2025, before Justice Bahati Mwamuye.
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“The tribunal exceeded its mandate and acted outside its jurisdiction,” the bank said in court filings, warning that implementing the decision could expose it to liabilities of up to KSh 30 billion.
Retirees claim the bank denied them proper cost of living adjustments, housing allowances and pension increments. They alleged the trustees used outdated salary scales and ignored court directives on how to use the pension surplus.
The Court of Appeal had earlier in March 2025 dismissed the bank’s challenge, upholding the tribunal’s findings and allowing the payout to proceed before the latest High Court order paused implementation.
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“We have waited for justice for decades. Some of our members have passed on without receiving their rightful dues,” a retiree representative told the media.
The retirees want the court to compel the bank to follow RBAT’s instructions and pay based on recalculated entitlements under the Retirement Benefits Act.
By Benedict Aoya
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