Orient Bank

The bank's headquarters and main branch are located at Orient Plaza, 14 Kampala Road, in the central business district of Kampala, Uganda's capital and largest city.[2] The geographical coordinates of the bank's headquarters are: 0°18'44.0"N, 32°35'08.0"E (Latitude:0.312222; Longitude:32.585556).[4]

The bank is involved in all aspects of commercial banking, with emphasis on providing banking services to non-government organisations and their staffs. As of December 2019, the bank's total assets were valued at UGX:814.3 billion (US$221.58 million), with shareholders' equity of UGX:114.1 billion (approximately US$31.05 million).[2]

The bank was founded in 1993 by a group of businesspeople who were related by blood and marriage.[5]

In 1996, the bank opened its second branch in the city of Jinja, about one hour's drive east of the capital Kampala. In 2002, the bank acquired Trans-Africa Bank Limited, which had been declared insolvent by the BOU.[6]

Following a spate of Ugandan bank failures in the 1990s and early 2000s, the banking laws in Uganda were changed to bar family members from jointly owning more than 49 percent in the same financial institution. Orient Bank was given a grace period to find a suitable investor.[7]

In April 2009, Bank PHB Group, a Nigerian financial services group, acquired 80 percent shareholding in Orient Bank for a cash payment of US$62 million.[8] In August 2011, the group was itself declared insolvent by the Central Bank of Nigeria, and its assets and some liabilities were acquired by Keystone Bank Limited, which was owned by the Federal Government of Nigeria.[9]

In July 2014, international media reported that Keystone Bank planned to divest from Orient Bank.[10] In February 2015, Keystone Bank divested from Orient Bank by selling 42 percent shareholding to a private equity firm 8 Miles Fund, whose shareholders include celebrity entertainer and activist Bob Geldof, and the remaining 38 percent was sold to three individuals, namely Ketan Morjaria; one of the founders of the bank, Alemayehu Fisseha, and Zhong Shuang Quan.[11][12]

As of February 2015, the shareholding of the bank was as depicted in the table below:[13][14][15]

In July 2020, I&M Holdings Limited signed an agreement with the shareholders of Orient Bank Limited, to buy 90 percent equity in the issued share capital of Orient Bank Limited. The transaction is valued in excess of KSh2 billion (US$20 million), and is subject to regulatory approval from Uganda and Kenya.[17]

In November 2020, the Business Daily Africa newspaper reported that I&M Holdings Limited of Kenya would pay US$33.6 million in exchange for 90 percent shareholding in Orient Bank. After the acquisition has been concluded, the shareholding in the institution would look as illustrated in the table below. It is expected Orient Bank will rebrand to I&M Bank Uganda.[18][19]

The bank is governed by a seven-person board of directors, two of whom are executive directors and the other five are non-executive. Michael Cook, one of the non-executive directors, is the chairman. Kumaran Pather is the managing director and chief executive officer.[20]

As of July 2020, the bank had a network of branches in the central, eastern, and northern regions of Uganda. The branches of the bank included the following locations:[21]

1. Main Branch - Orient Plaza, 6/6A Kampala Road, Kampala
2. Acacia Branch: Acacia Shopping Mall, Kisementi, Kololo, Kampala
3. Arua Branch: 12 Avenue Road, Arua
4. Bweyogerere Branch: Mamerito House, Jinja Road, Bweyogerere
5. Entebbe Downtown Branch: 29 Kampala Road, Entebbe
6. Entebbe Airport Branch: Entebbe International Airport
7. Garden City Branch: Garden City Mall, Yusuf Lule Road, Kampala[22]
8. Gulu Branch: 15 Lamho Building, Awere Road, Market Square, Gulu
9. Jinja Branch: 8 Lady Alice Muloki Road, Jinja
10. Kabalagala Branch: 1900 Ggaba Road, Kabalagala, Kampala[23]
11. Kawempe Branch: 78 Bombo Road, Kawempe, Kampala
12. Kikuubo Branch: Grad Corner House, Kikuubo, Kampala
13. Kololo Branch: Nyonyi Gardens, 16/17 Wampeewo Avenue, Kololo, Kampala
14. Mbale Branch: 23 Naboa Road, Mbale
15. Mbarara Branch: 73 High Street, Mbarara
16. Ntinda Branch: Capital Shoppers Mall, Ntinda Road, Ntinda
17. William Street Branch - William Street, Kampala.

• Banking in Uganda
• Ugandan Commercial Banks
• Credit Bank

• Orient Bank Website
• Interview With Ketan Morjaria, Vice Chairman, Orient Bank: Done In October 2009
• 8 Miles Fund I To Deliver First Exit As of 5 August 2020.