The bank, which also operates in neighboring Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and South Sudan, said income from transactions surged 39.8%, driven by trade finance and other commissions.

Costs rose by almost a quarter, KCB said, mainly due to increased undertakings within the business and the integration of acquisitions like Trust Merchant Bank of the Democratic Republic of Congo, which was completed in December.

The lender, one of the two largest in Kenya, said it was "bullish" about prospects for this year, citing its regional subsidiaries whose contribution to group profit grew faster in 2022 than a year earlier.

It cut its annual dividend by a third to 2.00 shillings per share, on earnings of 12.71 shillings per share.

($1 = 129.7000 Kenyan shillings)

(Reporting by Duncan Miriri; Editing by Richard Chang)