Kenya Currency

The Kenya Shilling is Giving the US Dollar a Run for its Money

The Kenya currency unit, called the Kenya shilling, is backed by decades of stability and resilience. It has held its own in periods of economic and political flux, weathered the recent global financial crisis and is even currently appreciating against the major currencies.

Because the local currency delivers good value for money, 1 US$ equivalent buys you the 2 most read newspapers with change to spare. The local currency equivalent of 1 British Pound gets you a cup of Kenyan tea, which is highly rated and the equivalent of 1 Euro buys you 2 coke bottles.

Denominations

The Kenya currency is officially referred to as the Kenya Shilling. It is abbreviated as Ksh.

1 unit is divided into 100 cents. Bank notes come in denominations of 1000, 500, 200, 100 and 50.

Coins are in denominations of 40 (which is a limited edition coin commemorating the Kibaki presidency), 20, 10, 5 and 1 shillings. These are handy for tipping everyone from parking boys to market assistants.

Cents coins come in denominations of 50, 10 and 5. Although you probably wont get to use or even see the latter on your safari, they are still legal tender.

Where to Get Hold of Kenya Currency

When on safari in Kenya, you can get hold of Kenya shillings by either withdrawing money from ATMs, exchanging money at banks or foreign exchange bureaus or having money sent to you via money transfer services such as Western Union or MoneyGram.

ATMs

You can withdraw Kenya shillings from the many ATMs dotted all over the urban areas.

All the major banks such as Barclays, Standard Chartered and Kenya Commercial Bank have installed ATMs at most of their branches and these accept Visa, Visa Electron, Mastercard and Cirrus cards.

You will find these ATMs at the leading shopping malls such as Sarit Center, Junction, Yaya Center and Village Market as well as the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi.

You can also withdraw money from the Pesa Point ATMs.

Note however that withdrawal charges and currency exchange commissions apply. The daily ATM withdrawal limit is generally set at Ksh. 40,000. If you'll need more money, you will have to go into a bank branch with your card and identification papers such as a passport.

To avoid ending up with counterfeit Kenya shilling notes or less money, be sure to obtain your local currency from only banks and licensed forex bureaus. In particular, beware of unlicensed money traders luring you with rates that are too good to be true.

Kenya Exchange Rates

Forex bureaus offer considerably higher rates than banks. Banks generally offer lower rates AND charge commission on all foreign exchange transactions. It is therefore advisable to exchange your "hard" currency at the various forex bureaus in Nairobi, Mombasa, Malindi, Kisumu, Eldoret, Nakuru and Narok on the way to the famous Masai Mara.

The easiest currencies to exchange are US dollars, Euros and Pound Sterling. Here are the current indicative rates for these currencies:

For exchange rates against the other major currencies, be sure to check out the Kenya exchange rates page.

It is not advisable to convert too much money into Kenya Shillings as, besides Uganda and Tanzania, it is not easy to exchange Kenya currency abroad.

In Nairobi, I find that Maxfair and Satellite Forex Bureaus located along Wabera Street and occasionally Link Forex Bureau on Uganda House offer some of the best rates in town.

Banks

Banks generally open Monday to Friday from 9am to 3pm and from 9am to 12 noon on the first and last Saturday of the month.

Most forex bureaus open from 9am to 4pm Monday to Friday and up to 12 noon on Saturdays although some, such as Commercial Bank of Africa and the branches at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport operate 24/7.

Money Transfer

Your relatives and friends can wire you money via either Western Union or MoneyGram. The instantaneity of these services somewhat makes up for their steep charges.

The main Western Union agents in Kenya are Kenya Commercial Bank and Post Bank while MoneyGram's is the Cooperative Bank. The money transfer services are also offered by a number of forex bureaus.

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