Post Bank above BOU interim capital requirements as profits rise

Post Bank Uganda’s capital rose up to 129 Billion shillings earlier this week as the Bank’s shareholder Ministry of Finance Planning and Economic Development (MOFPED) resolved during its Annual General Meeting held at the beginning of the week in the Ministry’s board room to have it’s retained earnings of 19 Billion shillings recapitalise the bank.

This according to the Bank’s Managing Director Julius Kakeeto puts Post Bank’s paid-up capital requirements above the interim requirements set by the Bank of Uganda for this year which is 120 Billion shillings for all commercial banks, this puts the bank on the right trajectory to achieve the new minimum paid up capital of 150 Billion shillings set by the Central Bank with a deadline of June 2024.

“The bank has over the past 3 years also undergone a full digital transformation with the upgrading of its Post Mobile USSD so that clients with basic mobile phones can access its services wherever they are, it’s Post online platform has also been improved, a banking app known as Post App for those with smartphones also put in place alongside smart ATMs which enable cardless transactions,” Kakeeto says.

As a result of these massive investments in technology and operational systems upgrades, the bank’s profit for the year ended 31^st December 2022 increased to 15.1 Billion shillings up from 12.2 Billion shillings in 2021 representing a 19.3% increase in net profit year on year.

Post Bank’s income over the same period shot up from 144.5 Billion shillings in 2021 to 159.2 Billion shillings for 2022 with growth in the bank’s total assets reaching near the 1 trillion shillings mark at 946 Billion shillings as of December 2022 up from 745 Billion shillings in 2021.

Speaking to the press after the AGM, Andrew Otengo Owiny Chairman of Post Bank’s board of Directors commended Post Bank’s management for being able to improve its operational efficiency over the past 3 years, growing the branch network by an additional 5 branches over the last year and taking the lead when it comes to disbursement of the government’s Parish Development Model funds having on-boarded over 2600 parish SACCOS across the country for the PDM program already.

“The bank has taken tremendous strides forward from years back when it was associated with Posta, it’s visibility and brand identity too have improved thanks to the pragmatic strategy put in place by management which will ensure the bank takes leadership in serving Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises alongside Agri-businesses which are the core of its target market more effectively going forward,” he said.

Representing the shareholder (MOFPED) on behalf of the government, State Minister for Investment and Privatisation in the Ministry of Finance Hon. Evelyn Anite applauded Post Bank’s Managing Director Julius Kakeeto for infusing his agile, relentless and innovative style of management from the private sector into a government-owned Bank.

“ This has culminated into the recent positive turnaround of Post Bank from the previously loss-making entity it was into a profitable and vibrant Bank with even greater prospects in the future,” she said.

The management team has also been prudent and transparent in managing the affairs of the bank something we should be very thankful for in this era of combating corruption and that’s why the Auditor General passed Post Bank’s financial statements as satisfactory and query free for the year 2022.

“Consequently as the government pushes to empower its people economically and get them out of poverty through programs like PDM, I urge all Ugandans to join and support this initiative by banking with Post Bank so that it can achieve greater numbers and economies of scale which will, in turn, bring down interest rates for loans to about 10% average from the current 15% average as the government also invests more money into the bank with a long term goal of bringing interest rates for borrowers down to a much more affordable 6%” she concluded.