Housing Finance (HF) today launches its long -awaited rights issue at a time when the mortgage financier's turnaround strategy comes in the spot light in the wake of cut- throat competition and shrinking revenues.

Kenya's leading mortgage lender will go ahead with a Sh2.3 billion share sale later this month and is today expected to release the details of the offer and a timetable of events for the rights issue.

A successful rights issue will clear the way for HF to take as much as twice its current deposits, effectively increasing its lending to meet the rising demand for mortgage loans.

With the Central Bank requiring financial institutions to have at least a shilling of capital for every Sh12.5 in deposits, Housing Finance will hope the new foundation will give it a wider threshold for mortgage arrangements.

The CBK also bars institutions from lending above eight per cent of their core capital.

HF's financial reports indicate that the company was only one per cent above the statutory minimum allowing it to take up more customer deposits or loans with less than one per cent above the allowable minimum fraction of the core capital it could lend out.

The company's liquidity ratio was also at the minimum statutory requirement of 20 per cent.With such an outlook, HF is in dire need of a way to build its capital base for its expansion plan, analysts say.