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Top 10 Highest Paid CEOs in Kenya

The CEO (Chief Executive Officer) is the top ranking position in a company. Although different companies have varying names for the position, it is one and the same thing. CEOs are in charge of the operations, management and decision making of the compnay. As such, they are the highly paid employees. 

In Kenya, CEOs are among the highest paid personnel. This begs the question, who is the highest paid CEO in Kenya per month? Gideon Muriuki of Cooperative Bank is the highest paid CEO in Kenya.

Top 10 Highest Paid CEOs in Kenya

The following is a list of the highest paid CEOs in Kenya and their salaries.  

1. Gideon Muriuki

  • Company: Cooperative Bank
  • Monthly Salary: Ksh 31 Million

Gideon Muriuki has been the CEO of Cooperative Bank since 2001. He is the highest paid CEO in Kenya. He holds a Bachelor Science degree in Mathematics. He took over the company and has managed to turn it around to a profit making organization.

He is the highest paid CEO in Kenya. Gideon Muriuki salary is 105 million and a bonus of 271 million. 

2. Peter Ndegwa

  • Company: Safaricom
  • Monthly Salary: Ksh 9 Million

Peter Ndegwa is the CEO of Safaricom and is the third best paid CEO in Kenya. He took the position in 2020 after the passing of the late Bob Collymore.

He holds a Bachelor degree in Economics from the University of Nairobi and a Master degree in Business Administration from London School of Business. 

3. Allan Kivaluka

  • Company: Kenya Airways
  • Monthly Salary: Ksh 8.5 million

Allan Kivaluka is the current CEO of Kenya Airways (KQ) since April 2020. He is one of the top paid CEOs in Kenya. He previously was the CEO of Jambojet, a subsidiary of Kenya Airways.

He holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of Nairobi and a certificate in Psychology from University of Liverpool.    

4. Jeremy Awori

  • Company: ABSA
  • Monthly salary: Ksh 8.4 million

Jeremy Awori is the CEO of ABSA Bank, formerly Barclays Bank. He is also among the highest paid CEOs in Kenya and gets  hefty packages like Ksh 34 million remuneration and Ksh 25 million bonus.

He holds a Bachelor degree in Pharmacy from Manchester University and a Master in Business Administration from McGill University Montreal Canada.

Read also: Highest paying NGOs in Kenya.

5. John Gachora

  • Company: NCBA
  • Monthly Salary: Ksh 8 million

John Gachora is an Electrical engineer and bank executive at NCBA. He earns Ksh 8 million monthly salary and other packages, making him among the highly paid CEOs in Kenya. He has a Master's degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He has previously worked on Wall Street with Credit Suisse and Bank of America corporate headquarters where he was the Managing Director of Investment Banking.

In 2009, he joined Absa Capital in Johannesburg, South Africa. In November 2010, he became the CEO of Absa Group Limited and in 2013, he was appointed as CEO of NIC Bank Group until September 2019.  After the merger between NIC Group and CBA Bank Limited to form NCBA, he was appointed as the CEO of NCBA Group PLC in October 2019, a position he holds to date.

Read also: Leading Kenyan CEOs and entrepreneurs. 

6. Jane Karuku

  • Company: East African Breweries Limited
  • Monthly salary: Ksh 7.5 million

 

Jane Karuku

Jane Karuku is the current CEO of EABL and has made it to the list of top paid CEOs in Kenya. She holds Bachelor of Science in Food Science and Technology from the University of Nairobi and Masters in Business Administration from National University in California. She is one of the few women doing great in the corporate sector.

Read also: Highest paid journalists in Kenya. 

7. Benson Wairegi

  • Company: Britam
  • Monthly salary: Ksh 5.4 million

Benson Wairegi is the current CEO of Britam. He gets a salary of Ksh 5.4 million and other packages like Ksh 18 million gratuity and Ksh 1 million non-cash benefits. He started his career as an audit trainee at PriceWaterHouse Coopers.

He holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree and an MBA with specialty in Finance from the University of Nairobi. He is also a Certified Public Accountant.

8. James Mwangi

  • Company: Equity Bank
  • Monthly Salary: Ksh 5 million
James Mwangi

James Mwangi is the current CEO of Equity Group and some of the best paid CEOs in Kenya. He holds a Bachelors degree in Education from Kenyatta University and Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Nairobi. He is also a graduate of Advanced Management programme at the IESE Business School in Spain.

9. James Mworia

  • Company: Centum Investment 
  • Monthly salary: Ksh 3.73 million

James Mworia is the current CEO of Centum Investment and his salary keeps on fluctuating. He is also among the best paid CEOs in Kenya, earning hefty perks like a Ksh 132 million bonus. He holds a Bachelors degree in Law from the University of Nairobi and is a member of Certified Public Accountants of Kenya.

Read also: Highest paying jobs in Kenya. 

Summary of the Highest Paid CEOs in Kenya 

The above is a list of best paid CEOs in Kenya and their salaries. CEOs earn hefty remuneration and other packages like bonus if they hit their targets. Apart from high salaries, they also enjoy other packages like allowances and non cash benefits. 

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