If DTB Uganda were a person, it would be that well-dressed executive in a Land Cruiser, parked all day at a cafe, scrolling Quora for motivation quotes, rich, respectable, and completely disconnected from the hustle that built this country.
On paper, DTB has the makings of a powerhouse: 2.9 trillion in assets, UGX 2.2 trillion in deposits, and a regional brand with the muscle of a Kenyan parent.
But scratch the surface, and you will find a bank running on autopilot, low returns, high costs, dead capital, and an outdated lending model still obsessed with land titles in a country where value now lives in mobile phones, MoMo float, and cash-based trading.
This is not just a critique but a strategic awakening.
We are talking about a 43% loan-to-deposit ratio, an 85% cost-to-income ratio, and a Profit per staff member who can’t even buy a mid-sized Toyota, yet sits on trillions of deposits! And a lending strategy so cautious that it makes DTB more of a money museum than a financial engine.
But the real story? It’s not in the numbers; it’s in the thinking.
Why are most credit decisions made in Nairobi for a bank operating in Kampala? Why is capital sitting idle while entrepreneurs beg for funding? Why is “risk prudence” being used to justify paralysis?
If you’re a CEO, a regulator, or a banking executive who still believes banking should build nations, not just balance sheets, read my detailed post. Before the slow puncture becomes a complete breakdown.
Inbox me for the full 150-page summitBI25: State of Uganda’s Banking Sector report. This could be the smartest business investment you make this year for your team. They won’t just learn, but they will unlearn outdated banking theory and gain a top-level understanding of what it takes to build a future-ready bank. Get the full report and make it mandatory reading for every staff member. It’s the most practical, transformative training they will receive. Then sit back and watch agility rise, productivity soar, and strategy come alive.
In Part 3, we visit Equity Bank. What ails Equity?
Comment “Equity bank” if you want it examined next, or the name of any Ugandan bank you want highlighted in my next post.
Mr. Strategy.
