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Standard Chartered Bank has recorded a Sh2.5 billion ($19 million) pension charge in its Kenya operations following a 2025 decision by the Retirement Benefits Appeals Tribunal favoring 629 former employees.
In its latest financial statements, the bank said the rise in its global pension deficit was partly due to legal and regulatory developments in Kenya and India.
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“In Kenya, the Retirement Benefits Appeals Tribunal ruled largely in favor of a long-standing case brought by 629 former staff,” the lender noted, adding that the past service cost reflects the financial impact of the ruling, including the obligation to fully fund the pension scheme.
The $19 million has been recognized as a past service cost, increasing the bank’s retirement benefit liabilities for the reporting year. Standard Chartered also highlighted that any temporary surplus arising from mandated funding for former employees who have not yet been traced has been ignored in line with IFRIC 14 accounting standards.
The disclosure follows a significant milestone in the protracted dispute. In September 2025, the Supreme Court of Kenya upheld a decision requiring the bank to pay about Sh7 billion ($54 million) to the 629 former employees, confirming earlier findings that their retirement benefits had been underpaid.
The ruling reinforced the tribunal’s directive that the pension scheme be fully funded as determined.
Elsewhere, Standard Chartered reported a $48 million past service cost in India after new regulations broadened the definition of pay for statutory lump sum plans, further increasing the group’s overall pension deficit.
