Bank of Uganda loses historic case against former Crane Bank shareholder
Bank of Uganda headquarters in Kampala. The bank has lost a five year legal battle in the country’s Supreme Court against Sudhir Ruparelia, the founder of the defunct Crane Bank Limited in a landmark decision that could affect its bank supervision powers while raising questions about a potential revival of the collapsed lender. PHOTO FILE | NMG
Uganda’s Central Bank has lost a five year legal battle in the country’s Supreme Court against Sudhir Ruparelia, the founder of the defunct Crane Bank Limited in a landmark decision that could affect its bank supervision powers while raising questions about a potential revival of the collapsed lender.
The former Crane Bank was placed under statutory management by Bank of Uganda (BOU) in September 2016 following a damning audit report that revealed insufficient capital levels, shrinking liquidity ratios, surging loan default levels and gross mismanagement, among others. For instance, the non-performing loan ratio recorded in the bank’s credit portfolio was estimated at 30 percent, a figure higher than the overall industry loan default rate that stood at less than 10 percent during the same period.
