Bank of Uganda officials have told Parliament’s Committee on Commissions, Statutory Authorities and State Enterprises (COSASE) that they cannot trace the offices or address of Kirkland Associates, a law firm that they hired for consultancy services during the process of selling seven defunct banks.
They made this revelation on Monday while appearing before the COSASE.
COSASE is investigating BoU officials over the controversial closure of seven commercial banks.
The banks being investigated were closed between 1993 and 2016. They are; Teefe Bank, International Credit Bank Ltd, Greenland Bank, The Co-operative Bank, National Bank of Commerce, Global Trust Bank and Crane Bank Ltd (CBL).
The details of how and when BoU arrived at choosing JN Kirkland as an external consultant on an exit strategy from the 3 defunct banks are scanty, but available information show that it is JN Kirkland who identified a US company, Octavian Advisors, a US hedge fund, said to be specializing in distressed investments; itself founded in 2005, who agreed to buy the bad loan book, through M/S Nile River Acquisition Company (NRAC), which is said to have been incorporated in Mauritius on the 26th September 2007.
Accordingly, NRAC on 24th November 2007 bought the assets of International Credit Bank (ICB), Greenland bank, Cooperative Bank Assets (loans) amounting to Shs135 billion at $5.25m (Shs8.9bn), causing a loss of Shs126 billion?
