Pride Bank upgrades Kisoro branch

Kisoro, Uganda — A Ugandan bank has opened a full-service branch in Kisoro, a district tucked into the country’s mountainous south-western corner near the borders with Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where access to formal financial services has long been thin.

Pride Bank upgraded an outlet it has operated in Kisoro since 2018, saying the move would allow residents to open accounts, borrow, save and send money without the long journeys many previously made to reach a full branch.

The branch opened on Thursday with the district’s top central government official, Resident District Commissioner Badru Ssebyala, presiding as guest of honour.

Customers can now open an account with 10,000 shillings — less than $3 — and access loans, cash deposits and withdrawals, savings and fixed-deposit products, agency banking and digital services, according to the bank. The branch also handles international money transfers through Western Union, MoneyGram, Ria and Transfast, along with tax payments and mobile-money deposits.

The expansion reflects a broader trend in Uganda, where banks and microfinance lenders have pushed into rural districts as mobile money and agency banking lower the cost of reaching customers far from urban centres. Large swathes of the population remain outside the formal banking system, and lenders increasingly frame rural growth as both a commercial opportunity and a route to financial inclusion.

Pride Bank is itself a product of that shift. Formerly Pride Microfinance, it was licensed as a Tier II credit institution by the Bank of Uganda, the central bank, in November 2025, and now trades as Pride Bank Limited — a step up the regulatory ladder that allows it to offer a wider range of services.

Head of Business Joseph Fetaa said the branch reflected the bank’s commitment to bringing services closer to the communities it serves.

“We are excited to support individuals, farmers, SACCOs, businesses and community groups with financial solutions that empower them to grow and prosper,” Fetaa said, referring to the savings and credit cooperatives that many Ugandans rely on in the absence of mainstream banking.

Managing Director Veronicah Namagembe said the decision to upgrade the outlet had been driven by rising customer numbers and demand for a fuller range of services. She described the bank’s purpose as creating opportunities that “transform lives” for farmers, entrepreneurs and community groups.

Pride Bank director Peninnah Tibagwa Kasule, who opened the branch, said the lender had evolved from a microfinance institution into a commercial bank, and that expanding its network was aimed at widening access and supporting local enterprise. She said the bank’s growth had to rest on strong corporate governance and accountability.

Agriculture dominates Kisoro’s economy, with terraced hillsides given over to crops such as potatoes and beans, and the district also draws tourists to nearby gorilla habitats in the Virunga mountains. Pride Bank said it would continue lending across the agricultural value chain — to farmers, cooperatives and agro-processors — as well as to traders, transport operators and tourism businesses.

The bank operates a Group Guaranteed Lending Scheme and a community banking model targeting savings groups and cooperatives, which it said underpin the financial lives of many families in the district.