Crane Bank and Dfcu London Trial Opens: Inside 16-Week Legal Battle That Will Test Limits of English Commercial Justice

What the report says

A major London commercial trial involving Uganda’s Crane Bank and DFCU Bank has opened before the High Court of Justice, with proceedings expected to last 16 weeks. The case, filed as Crane Bank Limited & Ors v DFCU Bank Limited & Ors, brings together seven claimants, including Crane Bank’s former owners, and 15 defendants, among them DFCU Bank, its parent company, several individuals and investment firms.

According to Nile Post, the dispute stems from the Bank of Uganda’s decision in October 2016 to place Crane Bank under statutory management, followed by receivership in January 2017 and the transfer of most of the bank’s assets and liabilities to DFCU. The claimants allege the takeover was part of a corrupt scheme involving central bank officials and others. DFCU denies wrongdoing and says Crane Bank was severely undercapitalised and that the transaction was lawful.

The case is also significant because it asks the English court to consider the foreign act of state doctrine and how far it can examine actions taken by Uganda’s central bank. The Court of Appeal ruled in 2023 that the doctrine did not bar the claims from proceeding at the jurisdictional stage, allowing the matter to move to a full merits trial.

The hearing is expected to rely heavily on documents, transaction records and expert evidence. Nile Post said the case has already produced several procedural rulings, including disclosure disputes and amendments to DFCU’s defence, and that the eventual judgment will determine the legal issues before the court.