For over four years, shareholders of BPR Bank Rwanda have decried delayed dividend payments and having no information about their shares as the bank underwent mergers and acquistions. ALSO READ: Govt explores options to pay off BPR shareholders So far, the bank has undergone three mergers and acquisitions with various firms, namely RaboBank, Atlas Mara, and most recently in 2022, Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB) Group. In 2013, the regulation by the National Bank of Rwanda (BNR) on the licensing conditions of banks raised the initial capital requirements for banks. At the time, BPR was requested to have Rwf30 billion as the initial capital, yet it had Rwf15 billion only. To remain in the business, it required that its members increase their shares in order to meet the central bank regulation requirements. Realising that BPR could not raise the required funds, BPR sold 62 per cent of its total shares to Atlas Mara in 2016 to raise more capital, with RaboBank and local shareholders retaining 14 per cent and 23 per cent, respectively. Later, Atlas Mara, as the majority shareholder in BPR, sold its shares to KCB Group, but the Rwandan shareholders, who are the founders of the bank, retained their shares. Currently, KCB owns 87.56 per cent of the total shares, while local shareholders account for 12.44 per cent. Patience Mutesi, Managing Director of BPR Bank Rwanda, told The New Times that there has been an ongoing exercise to collect data of all shareholders that would inform the bank of the actual number of sharesholders. However, the process to collect data has not been without challenges. The 1994 genocide against the Tutsi, which resulted in a loss of some assets and data in banks across the country, is one among others. BPR was created in 1975, as Union des Banques Populaires du Rwanda (UBPR), initially as a savings and credit cooperative comprising some 148 “people’s banks” until 2007 when it became a commercial bank. Mutesi indicated that the lender seeks to start issuing share certificates that will inform the shareholders of their actual share value and status, and a process by which registered shareholders can transfer their shares. Shareholders concerns During the announcement of the quarterly Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) and Financial Stability Statement (FSS), on August 21, Soraya Hakuziyaremye, central bank Deputy Governor, said that the dividend issue was ‘rightly raised’ by minority shareholders claiming that they were not given proper access to sell their shares but also a concern on the valuation of their shares. This is something that BNR and the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning are looking into to make sure the rights of minority shareholders of BPR are respected, she noted. As of July 2024, BPR Bank Rwanda stated to have registered 238,868 out of a list of 576,245 members. “We are hoping to have a clear picture of all minority shareholders in a few months and the way forward for those who want to sell their shares that it will be done with the right value and for those who want to remain shareholders are also represented at the board level and their rights respected,” Hakuziyaremye explained. On the overall dividend payout, Mutesi said that the management withheld dividends to further cement the lender’s financial position in the market given that it is still in its nascent phase requiring more investments. This was during the Annual General Meeting (AGM), where she mentioned that investments were being channeled to revamp the bank’s branches across the country, reinforcing digital channels, and staff upskilling training. The decision on the fate of dividend payout for all shareholders (both local shareholders and KCB) will be taken by the board members during the next AGM, she added.
