I just received a clarification from UTL’s m-sente manager (041433377x) in response to my earlier post today titled. UTL still doesn’t get it. According to the manager, the concerns raised in my article are founded, specifically the recommendation that UTL should encourage customers to pay for UTL services using m-sente by giving them discounts and prizes. He said, “We are in a transition process. We have had to upgrade our mobile money platform to make it more robust and interoperable. The recommendations you’ve made are in our plan, and we shall start rolling them out in the first quarter of…

This morning, I got a call from UTL’s m-sente (UTL’s mobile money service) marketing officer. She called my mobile using their office line 0414695258. She talked like a robot, and I did not like the approach. Here she is: “Good morning Sir. Is this Mr. Mugisa. I am calling from UTL. Thank you for using UTL network. I am calling you to use m-sente. You can now use it to pay Dstv, UMEME and National Water. Is there anything which has been stopping you from using m-sente.?” Here is how I replied: “Yes. There are many for not using m-sente. First,…

This is a summary of my presentation to bank CEOs at an event organized by the Uganda Bankers Association onFriday 11th October 2013, at Sheraton Hotel. To download the presentation, click here. The rate of fraud in Uganda’s financial institution is on the increase. Just like any industry, communication (or transfer of data and voice) is at the center of the success of banking business. Banking business processes are highly automated, with technology as a critical success factor. All the communication media are at risk – email, chat, wire transfer, web, phone, sms, payment platforms via http and https, fax,…

Continued from part 1. Just to recap part 1, loan officers in a bank created fictitious loan applications, got the loans and withdrew the money. This kind of scheme involving “stealing in small amounts, over a long period of time” is usually difficult to discover. Before we get to how we uncovered it, here is more background This fictitious loan fraud was so good that it would have continued, had it not been for a disgruntled whistleblower, who had been part of the scheme but later left the company. Of the 12 people in the credit department, four knew about…

After several years of investigating fraud, I have come to the realization that in many cases, internal staff are involved in one way or the other. It is so difficult to pull off a fraud without involving an insider. When it comes fraud examination, everyone is a suspect until proven otherwise. I have found it important to take everyone’s statement to account for their time, roles and activities immediately before, during and after the fraud or theft incident. Looking carefully through those statements, you get to realize how some of their information is inconsistent either in an attempt to protect…

The biggest financial challenge is living beyond your means. You could attribute this extravagant life style to our society. As one rich Ugandan once advised, “if you want to succeed in Uganda, appear to be successful by driving a great car, owning a fantastic home in the CBD and having a big office.” Well… by the time you have these things, you are already rich! The bottom line is people want to associate with success. No one will give you business deals if you don’t play Golf or enjoy coffee at the upscale Serena or Sheraton hotels. If you are…