A number of commercial banks have announced reductions in lending rates following Bank of Ugandas recent cut in its benchmark lending rate. Banks that have announced reductions in lending rates are Housing Finance Bank, United Bank of Africa, Diamond Trust Bank, Standard Chartered Bank, GT Bank, Tropical Bank, and ABC Capital Bank.
The high costs of operating an account and the proximity of the bank are the other reasons fronted for not owning a bank account, Dr Sarah Ssewanyana the Executive Director of EPRC says. She however notes that reduced access to formal banking was not entirely surprising.
Uganda is home to 25 commercial banks of which the top players namely Barclays Bank, Stanbic Bank and Standard Chartered Bank are foreign owned controlling 44.3percent of the total assets of all commercial banks in Uganda.
The Bank of Uganda has clarified that every commercial bank is required to act fairly and reasonably in all dealings with its customers and not take advantage of them.
