A Photo Montage of bank CEOs and Managing Directors
Uganda’s commercial banks recorded a whopping Shs1.633 trillion net profit in 2024, up from Shs1.4 trillion posted in 2023, Business Focus exclusively reports.
It’s important to note that Uganda currently has 22 fully fledged commercial banks. This is after three banks including ABC Capital Bank (U) Ltd, Opportunity Bank and Guaranty Trust Bank (U) Ltd downgraded from a Tier I Commercial Bank License to a Tier II Credit Institution License effective July 1, 2024. The three banks failed to meet Bank of Uganda’s new minimum capital requirement of Shs150bn, resulting into the downgrade. The paid-up capital for tier II credit institutions is Shs25bn.
Unlike the previous years, Business Focus’ exclusive analysis of the financial statements of 22 banks for the year ended 31st December 2024 shows that all banks made a profit in 2024.
However, the top five most profitable banks control a commanding 74.46% of the industry profits. Additionally, the top 10 most profitable banks share 89.59% of the industry profits, leaving the rest of the banks (12) to share a paltry 10.41%.
It’s also important to note that Equity Bank returned to profitability. The lender recorded Shs20.14bn net profit in 2024, from Shs18.77bn loss recorded a year earlier.
However, Standard Chartered Bank (StanChart) saw its profit fall by 76.15% to Shs19.09bn in 2024, down from Shs80.03bn in 2023. As a result, StanChart moved out from the top 5 most profitable banks to the 15th position. This is after the lender announced to divest its Wealth and Retail business. Sanjay Rughani, the StanChart Chief Executive Officer says the divestment process has since been initiated and is expected to be completed within 18-24 months subject to regulatory approvals.
“The bank will ensure that we have a smooth transition to the identified buyer for both our clients and colleagues,” the bank said in a statement.
The top 10 most profitable banks
Stanbic Bank maintained its position as Uganda’s most profitable bank. This is after the bank posted Shs486.82bn profit in 2024, up from Shs421.43bn recorded in 2023. This represents a growth of 15.52%. Managed by Mumba Kenneth Kalifungwa as Chief Executive, Stanbic holds 29.81% of the industry profit. The analysis shows that Stanbic bank’s profit beats the profit of 17 banks combined, further highlighting the fact that the market is largely dominated by a few banks. Kalifungwa officially joined Stanbic in March this year, implying that he’s not responsible for the 2024 results. The impressive results can be attributed to Samuel Mwogeza who was appointed as Stanbic Bank Uganda Interim Chief Executive and Barbara Dokoria as Interim Executive Director, effective April 1, 2024. This followed the departure of Anne Juuko as CEO and Emma Mugisha as Executive Director.
Centenary Bank, an indigenous bank headed by Fabian Kasi as Managing Director also maintained its position as the 2nd most profitable bank. Centenary’s profit grew by 15.21% to Shs342.28bn in 2024, up from Shs297.08bn recorded a year earlier. The bank’s market share under the profit category is 20.96%.
Absa Bank also maintained its position as the country’s 3rd most profitable bank. Headed by David Wandera as Interim Managing Director, Absa saw its profit grow by 22.03% to Shs177.8bn in 2014, up from Shs145.7bn recorded a year earlier. Its market share under this category is 10.89%. This great performance can be attributed to Mumba Kenneth Kalifungwa and his team. He has since joined Stanbic Bank Uganda as CEO.
Bank of Baroda is Uganda’s 4th most profitable bank after its profit grew by 15.12% to Shs133.95% in the year under review, up from Shs116.36bn in 2023. Headed by Shashi Dhar as Managing Director, Bank of Baroda’s industry market share under the profit category is 8.2%.
dfcu Bank returns to the table of big boys after posting Shs75.13bn in 2024, up from Shs34.03bn a year earlier, representing an increase of 120.78%. Headed by Charles Mudiwa as Chief Executive Officer, dfcu’s market share under this category is 4.6%. This is after the bank’s Non-Performing Assets (NPA) ratio reduced remarkably to 4.4% in 2024, down from 9.5% in 2023.
Mudiwa attributed the impressive performance to tactical changes in management and strategy.
“We started by refocusing the business, we went on to reorganize the business and we are now in the process of transforming the business. Are we there yet? The train is in the right direction,” he said, adding: “We had to make sure we have cleaned up our loan book. You can’t start growing a business when leakages are happening all over, the first thing you do is to stop the bleeding, you fix it and then grow. Last year was about fixing the business. We are now out of the woods and ready to grow further. Our aim is to be among the top five most profitable banks in Uganda.”
The top five most profitable banks control a commanding 74.46% of the industry profits, leaving 17 banks to share the remaining 25.54%.
The 6th most profitable bank is Citibank Uganda. This is after its profits increased by 5.3% to Shs71.91bn from Shs68.29bn recorded a year earlier. This gives the bank a market share of 4.4% under the profit category.
It’s followed by Housing Finance Bank (HFB) in 7th position. Headed by Michael K. Mugabi as Managing Director, HFB’s profit grew by 9.21% to Shs71.13% in 2024, up from Shs65.13bn recorded in 2023. This gives the lender a market share of 4.36% under the category under review.
In 8th position is NCBA Bank that is headed by Mark Muyobo as CEO. The lender saw its profit increase by 44.18% to Shs38.9bn in 2024, up from Shs26.98bn recorded a year earlier. Its market share is 2.38%. This is the first time NCBA has broken into the top 10 most profitable banks.
Muyobo, who has been behind the bank’s impressive growth, said the bank continued to deliver on its purpose of inspiring greatness in its customers through its integrated model centred on Corporate customer ecosystems by providing solutions along with the value chain, resulting in strong financial performance in 2024.
Its followed by PostBank in 9th position. Headed by Julius Kakeeto as MD/ CEO, PostBank’s profit grew by 28.41% to Shs35.35bn in 2024, up from Shs27.53bn in 2023. This gives the bank a market share of 2.16%.
KCB Bank completes the top 10 most profitable banks in Uganda as of 2024. Headed by Edgar Byamah as Managing Director, KCB’s profit fell to Shs29.94% in 2024, down from Shs30.15bn posted in 2023, giving the lender a market share of 1.83% under the profit category. Among the top 10, KCB is the only bank whose market share under the profit category is below 2%.
The top 10 most profitable banks share 89.59% of the industry profits, leaving 12 banks to share a paltry 10.41%.
Find detailed analysis in the table below;
PROFITS-OF-UGANDA-BANKS-2024-by-Business-FocusSmall but profitable!
All the banks that are considered small made a profit in 2024. However, no bank in the bottom table has a market share above 2% under the profit category.
Bank of Africa that is headed by Arthur Isiko occupies the 11th position. This is after the bank posted Shs25.6bn from Shs25.57bn in 2023. This gives the lender a market share of 1.57% under this category. It’s followed by Diamond Trust Bank (DTB) with a market share of 1.45%. This after its profit reduced by 42.13% to Shs23.74bn in 2024, from Shs41.02bn in 2023.
I&M Bank that is headed by Robin Bairstow as Managing Director sits in the 13th position. This is after its profit grew by 76.26% to Shs20.27bn in 2024, from Shs11.5bn in 2023. This gives the lender a market share of 1.24% under this category.
Equity Bank is the 14th most profitable bank in Uganda. The bank returned to profitability in 2024 by posting Shs20.14bn from Shs18.77bn loss recorded a year earlier. This gives the lender a market share of 1.23%.
It’s followed by Standard Chartered Bank in 15th position. This is after its profit fell by 76.15% to Shs19.09bn in 2024, from Shs80.03bn in 2023. This gives the bank a market share of 1.17% under the profit category.
Other banks that made a profit include; Bank of India (Shs16.45bn), Ecobank (Shs10.81bn), Finance Trust Bank (Shs10.35bn), Tropical Bank (Shs7.16bn), United Bank for Africa (Shs6.93bn), Cairo Bank Uganda (Shs5.33bn) and Exim Bank (Shs3.94bn).
Check for more details about the most profitable banks in Uganda
PROFITS-OF-UGANDA-BANKS-2024-by-Business-Focus2025 Outlook and beyond
A number of industry captains see a brighter 2025 as Uganda prepares for the 2026 general elections.
dfcu Bank Managing Director, Charles Mudiwa says: “We’re entering this phase from a position of strength. The economy is stable, and sectors such as oil and gas, agriculture—especially through our Rabobank partnership—ICT, education, health, manufacturing, and infrastructure offer immense potential. Our growth strategy is anchored on these pillars. We are also focused on enhancing customer engagement, boosting productivity through agile and evidence-based leadership, and leveraging technology to deliver superior services.”
Fabian Kasi, the Managing Director at Centenary Bank says: “In 2025, the Bank will focus on executing strategic objectives from its 5-year plan, prioritizing balance sheet optimization, risk management, non-funded income growth, cost efficiency, mission-critical portfolios (microfinance, SMEs, agriculture), outreach expansion, business transformation through innovation and digitization, project management, staff engagement, and sustainability.”
Looking ahead, Stanbic Uganda’s executives emphasized their commitment to innovation, financial inclusion, and sustainable growth.
“We are committed to delivering value to our stakeholders and navigating evolving market conditions with agility,” the bank stated. The bank remains focused on maintaining its trajectory while supporting economic growth and financial accessibility in Uganda.
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