KAMPALA – The dfcu Bank board has announced that Friederich Christian Pelser will replace Mr Deepak Malik on the board.
Mr Malik, the Chief Executive Officer of Arise Holdings Ltd, which is dfcu Bank’s biggest shareholder resigned from the latter’s board of directors three months ago, without giving reasons for his sudden action.
In a notice published by dfcu Bank attorneys Ligormac Advocates on Tuesday October 22, the board welcomed Mr Pelsey, an accountant of 16 years experience.
“He has extensive experience in investment banking and private equity, which he brings to the board” the notice says.
Mr. Pelsey replaces Mr Malik who resigned from the board on July 5.
“I will be available as an advisor of the Chairpersons of the Dfcu bank and dfcu Limited respectively,” Mr Malik, whose resignation the dfcu had earlier denied, wrote.
dfcu, later in an internal memo served through an advocate in Septemmber, confirmed that Mr Malik ceased being a member of the board on September 21, 2018, confirming earlier reports that the bank, which has been a subject of controversy ever since they took over assets of Crane Bank a year or so ago, continues to revel in problems post-takeover.
Mr Deepak Malik’s resignation, issued in a letter to the DFCU board three months ago, came in the aftermath of pulling out of the bank by the Commonwealth Development Corporation (CDC), Britain’s oldest development finance institution.
Arise Holdings has 58 percent shares while CDC is dfcu’s oldest investor after jointly setting up the bank with the Government of Uganda in 1964. CDC’s move comes in the aftermath of the fall out from her partner’s takeover of Crane Bank with the transaction attracting industry scrutiny over transparency issues and it’s European shareholders in the spotlight. The Auditor General has since issued a damning report against the transaction flagging it untransparent.
The CDC on June 14, notified the dfcu Board and other shareholders that they would sell their stake.
Dfcu has in recent months been battling former Crane Bank shareholders over property worth millions of dollars.
The dfcu bank acquired Crane Bank, the then 4th largest bank on February 27, 2017, at a fee later to be discovered as a paltry Shs 200 billion. However Former Crane Bank shareholders led by majority shareholder Sudhir Ruparelia and family have dragged the Bank of Uganda (BoU) to court, claiming their bank was sold to dfcu without considering their interests in accordance with the Financial Institutions Act.
