KAMPALA – The Commercial Division of the High Court has dismissed an application by businessman Dr. Matthias Magoola, Dei Industries International Limited and Dei BioPharma Limited seeking to overturn the appointment of an independent auditor in their long-running loan dispute with Equity Bank Uganda and Equity Bank Kenya.
In a ruling delivered electronically on July 29, 2026, Justice Susan Abinyo found that the applicants had failed to prove allegations that the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Uganda (ICPAU) compromised its integrity, objectivity and independence when appointing Clayton & Company to audit the disputed loan accounts.
The ruling marks another procedural victory for Equity Bank but does not determine the substantive issues in the case. The court is yet to decide whether Dei Industries and Dei BioPharma owe the banks the amounts claimed or whether the banks inflated the companies’ outstanding loan balances as alleged by Dr. Magoola.
The legal battle stems from a series of loan facilities advanced to Dr. Magoola’s companies between 2016 and 2021.
According to court records, Dei Industries International Ltd, a wheat and maize flour processor, obtained several credit facilities from Equity Bank Uganda, while Dei BioPharma Ltd borrowed from Equity Bank Kenya to finance the construction and equipping of its pharmaceutical manufacturing plant in Matugga, Wakiso District.
The financial stakes increased after the Ugandan government approved a UGX578.4 billion investment in Dei BioPharma. The dispute now centres on loan balances valued at approximately UGX243.25 billion.
Because the dispute largely depends on reconciling the loan accounts, both parties initially agreed that an independent audit should be conducted.
KPMG was first appointed to carry out the exercise under a consent adopted by the court in December 2024. However, Dei Industries later successfully challenged KPMG’s appointment, prompting the court to direct ICPAU to nominate another independent audit firm.
ICPAU subsequently appointed Clayton & Company of Jinja, which examined documents submitted by both parties and later filed its audit report before court.
Before the report could be relied upon, Dr. Magoola, Dei Industries and Dei BioPharma returned to court seeking orders to revoke ICPAU’s appointment, arguing that the accounting body’s independence had been compromised.
Represented by senior lawyer Fred Muwema, the applicants argued that Equity Bank Uganda’s Head of Legal, Elizabeth Nayiga, was not competent to defend the conduct of the auditors because she neither belonged to ICPAU nor participated in the audit process. The applicants also sought permission to amend their original lawsuit to reflect developments that had occurred after the case was filed.
Equity Bank, through lawyer Sim Katende, opposed the application, arguing that the independent audit remained the most credible method of determining whether there had been wrongful debits, predatory lending or outstanding loan balances. Katende further argued that ICPAU’s role was limited to appointing an independent auditor in accordance with the court’s previous orders and that the applicants were attempting to abandon an audit process they had initially requested.
Justice Abinyo agreed with the banks, ruling that Elizabeth Nayiga was entitled to swear the replying affidavit in her capacity as Equity Bank Uganda’s Head of Legal.
The judge also held that ICPAU was under no obligation to consult either party before appointing an auditor, noting that such consultations would have undermined the independence required by the court.
She found that Dr. Magoola, Dei Industries and Dei BioPharma had failed to prove that ICPAU’s integrity, objectivity or independence had been compromised.
Consequently, the court dismissed the application, with costs in the cause, and declined to interfere with the audit process.
The main commercial suit, which will determine the actual loan liabilities and address allegations of inflated loan balances, remains pending before the Commercial Division of the High Court and is scheduled for further proceedings later this year.
