DFCU Bank has secured a procedural win in the high-profile legal dispute currently before the High Court in London, where it is being sued by Crane Bank Limited (CBL) and its former owners over the controversial 2017 takeover of the bank.
While the full trial is scheduled for October 2026, recent rulings on preliminary matters have largely favored DFCU, bolstering its position as the case moves forward.
The latest decisions were made during a case management conference, which did not address the core allegations but focused instead on evidence disclosure requirements and the exchange of documents between the parties.
In a significant development, the court determined that the claimants, led by CBL and businessman Sudhir Ruparelia, had not met their full disclosure obligations. As a result, the judge granted several of DFCU’s applications for additional searches and document disclosures.
Notably, Sudhir Ruparelia was ordered to submit his mobile phone for forensic examination by independent experts to identify any potentially relevant material. His daughter, Sheena Ruparelia, was also directed to disclose documents from her personal email account.
In another key ruling, the Court rejected a request by the claimants to block a set of audit reports compiled by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC). DFCU had argued that the reports form a central part of its defense, supporting its claims that CBL’s previous management was responsible for significant mismanagement—an issue that DFCU says justified regulatory intervention by the Bank of Uganda.
Welcoming the outcome, DFCU described the rulings as a step forward in the pursuit of a fair and transparent legal process.
“We maintain that the case has no merit and are fully prepared to continue cooperating with the legal process,” the bank said in a statement. “DFCU Bank remains committed to the highest standards of ethics and international best practices.”
The lawsuit, which has drawn wide interest in Uganda and internationally, arises from the Bank of Uganda’s decision in 2017 to take over Crane Bank and later transfer its assets to DFCU. With the trial still more than a year away, the latest decisions mark a major development in the long-running dispute.
