The effect of regulations on the financial performance of deposit taking savings and credit cooperative societies in Kenya

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of regulations on the financial performance of deposit taking savings and credit cooperatives(SACCOs) in Kenya. More specifically, the study sought to investigate the effect on management efficiency, liquidity and capital adequacy on the financial performance of deposit taking SACCOs in Kenya, as stipulated by Sacco Society Regulatory Authority (SASRA). Many studies have clearly avoided looking at specific aspects of these regulations particularly their effects on financial performance of the Sacco. This study adopted a descriptive survey design. The target population was all the 135 deposit taking SACCOs in Kenya registered and licensed by SASRA by 2014. Both primary and secondary data was used in this study, where a census survey was preferred as the population of the study was small. A likert scale questionnaire was used to gather primary information while a secondary data collection sheet was used for collecting secondary information regarding SACCO performance. Out of the 135 questionnaires sent out, 109 responded and returned the questionnaires, this represented 81% response rate. The secondary data was sorted, coded and input into the statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) for production of graphs, tables, descriptive statistics and inferential statistics. The results indicated that SACCO regulations have positive effect on capital ratio and which led to an increase in return on assets (ROA), further it was established that increase in liquidity led to a decrease in ROA .The study found out that a unit increase in management efficiency increased ROA. From the findings, the study concluded that capital regulations, capital ratio, liquidity and management efficiency significantly influence financial performance of the Deposit Taking SACCOs. Most SACCOs reported improvement in their performance both in membership, management efficiency, portfolio growth and loan cycle. Even though this was attributed to a number of factors ranging from increased membership, high efficiency, high demand and quick recoveries, one can easily attribute these results on positive influence of SASRA regulation. The study recommends that further research should be done on the effect of competition on the financial performance of the SACCOs and the effect of SASRA regulations on the organizational culture of SACCOs. Further research study should be carried out to assess the impact of Sacco’s regulations, cost of intermediation and growth of Deposit Taking financial institutions, as well as regulation on non deposit taking SACCOs in Kenya