The influence of size and outreach on agency-related costs in the management of deposit-taking financial co-operatives in Kenya

Using agency and economies of scale theories, this study investigates the influence of size and outreach factors on agency-related costs (ARCs) in the management of deposit-taking (DT) savings and credit co-op societies (SACCOs) in Kenya. Data are retrieved from 160 DT SACCOs in Kenya over the period 2014–2021. Both panel ordinary least squares and 2-step generalized method of moments are utilized to address the objectives of the study. The results depict that ARC levels within the global standard between 0.040 and 0.046 of the average assets with a significant decline during the Covid-19 pandemic period. We further note that as DT SACCOs scale up (in terms of the peer group), the resultant economies of scale lead to lower ARCs. More specifically, smaller DT SACCOs seem to exhibit weaker expense efficiency compared to larger ones. Finally, the results reveal that SACCOs with more members and branch offices are associated with higher ARCs. The study calls for a cautious and prudent expense management strategy by the DT SACCOs to assure solvency and self-sufficiency of the financial cooperatives in Kenya.