The fate of more than 600 retired employees of Standard Chartered Bank now hangs in the balance as they accuse the lender of deliberately defying court orders and frustrating their access to billions of shillings in pension benefits.
Through lawyers Danstan Omari and Martina Swiga, the retirees on Monday, September 22,2025, painted a grim picture of their lives, saying many of them have been reduced to poverty and despair despite spending decades of service at the bank.
“Most of these elderly Kenyans can no longer take their children to school, they cannot access medical care, and they cannot engage in any meaningful development at their old age because Standard Chartered has locked up their money,” Omari told journalists outside the Milimani Law Courts.
The pensioners say the dispute, which dates back to 1999 when the bank shifted from a Defined Benefit to a Defined Contribution Scheme, has dragged on for decades despite victories in every court,from the Retirement Benefits Tribunal, the High Court, the Court of Appeal, and most recently the Supreme Court.
“The Supreme Court, the Court of Appeal, the High Court, and the Retirement Benefits Tribunal all said the same thing, this money belongs to the pensioners. Standard Chartered has no choice but to pay,” Omari declared.
In a demand letter, the retirees issued the bank a seven-day ultimatum to comply with the rulings or face contempt proceedings.
“Take further notice that if our demands are not met within seven (7) days, we shall move to the High Court seeking to have the Chief Executive Officer, the Chief Financial Officer, the Chief Risk Officer, the Head of Legal, the Chairman of Trustees, the entire Board of Directors of Standard Chartered Bank Kenya, and the Board of Trustees of the Standard Chartered Kenya Pension Funds committed to civil jail and/or fined for contempt of court,” the letter warned.
The retirees accused the bank of “acting in a manner that disregards judicial authority, discriminates against non-629 members, and undermines the rule of law,” despite last month’s Supreme Court judgment that cleared the way for the payout of more than Sh30 billion.
According to lawyer Swiga, Standard Chartered has “exhausted every avenue of appeal” and should stop dragging its feet.
“The Tribunal dismissed them, the High Court dismissed them, the Court of Appeal dismissed them, and even the Supreme Court has now closed the matter. What else are they waiting for?” she posed.
For the retirees, the fight is no longer just about money; it is about dignity.
“This is not charity. It is their sweat, their pension, their security in old age. The law is on their side, and the courts have spoken. We will not sit back as they continue to suffer,” Omari vowed.
