A Kenyan court on Thursday halted the merger between a Kenyan branch of South Africa's Standard Bank (Stanbic) and local CFC bank.

High Court judge Roselyn Nambuye made the ruling after 15 employees made an application demanding 1.1-billion shillings ($17.8-million) from the Stanbic as retirement benefits.

"That first defendant (Stanbic Bank Kenya) or its agents be restrained by a temporary order of injunction ... from proceeding with the proposed merger with CFC Bank pending the hearing and determination of this suit," she said.

The merger, which was approved by Kenya Monopolies Commission, could have made the new entity the fourth largest bank in the country.

Stanbic bank has assets amounting to 29-billion shillings ($437-million) in Kenya, while CFC Bank is worth 28.8-billion shillings ($434-million), according to the central bank of Kenya.

The CFC runs additional insurance and financial services subsidiaries in Kenya and Tanzania.

The new bank, would be renamed CFC Stanbic Holdings, becoming the fourth largest in the country — behind Barclays, Standard Chartered, and Kenya Commercial Bank.

Sapa