DPF reassures Mercantile Bank depositors
Dr Julia Oyet assures depositors with Mercantile Credit Bank that their money is safe. PHOTO DPF MEDIA
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The Deposit Protection Fund (DPF) together with the Bank of Uganda expect to pay 2,850 customers who had accounts with the now closed Mercantile Credit Bank Ltd. This, however, will depend of the reliability of the personal information of the clients at Bank of Uganda and the closed ban.
The Deposit Protection Fund started payment of the protected depositors, who have a maximum of 1 million shillings, on Saturday, through the Mobile Money platforms.
The Fund says that while it ready to reimburse affected depositors immediately, it has challenges withe verification of the clients because many of them never update their personal information.
However, there are many who do not have mobile phone details corresponding with their National Identity Cards data.
The Deposit Protection Fund(DPF) says this is one of the major challenges the agencies find when paying out.
DPF Chief Executive Officer, Julia Clare Oyet urges all account holders in the various financial institutions to ensure that their personal information is always updated so that it would be easier and faster to pay them in case need arises.
Similar challenges have until now hindered the reimbursement of a quarter of the deposit held by the liquidated EFC Uganda, five months later.
Customers with more than 1 million shillings up to 10 million will be paid through Stanbic, the bank designated by Bank of Uganda to handle the customers. Stanbic’s Lugogo branch was chosen considering that it is situated in the area that had the highest concentration of Mercantile Credit Bank Ltd customers.
According to the regulations, the Deposit Protection Fund insures deposits of up to 10 million shillings per account, which it is responsible for paying back in case of need.Deposits more than 10 million are handled by the Central Bank.
Statistics about the closed Bank’s customers show that out of the total depositors, individual accountholders were 1,980, with 1,896 fully protected, meaning that they will get their deposit paid back in full, while 84 individuals were partially protected, meaning they had more than 10 million shillings with the bank.
These will have the money in excess of 10 million referred to BoU for handling. Company account holders were 424, with 370 of them fully protected and 54 partially.
On the other hand, there are 213 Joint Accounts with 191 protracted and the others partially. The statistics also show that Trust Accounts were 233, with 299 of them fully protected.
Company, Joint and Trust account holders have been directed to submit their documents for verification at the DPF offices, starting Monday July 8.
In terms of money, DPF plans to reimburse the total protected of 1.391 billion, accounting for 1 percent of the total, was fully protected (not more than 10 million shillings) and will also be fully catered for, accounting for 46 percent of DPF’s responsibility.
The partially protected deposits (more than 10 million shillings) totaled 110.395 billion, and DPF will be responsible for reimbursing 1.64 billion, bringing the total number of DPF’s responsibility to 3.031 billion shillings, according to Michael Lugemwa, the Director Finance at DPF.
The Bank of Uganda is expected to announce how the rest of the deposits, about 108.7 billion shillings will be handled.
Those depositors who also had outstanding loans will have to receive their deposit after deducting the outstanding loan amounts.
Oyet advised those with outstanding loans to continue paying back through the designated Stanbic branches.
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