Old Mutual transfers Kampala landmark as two more properties face review

One of central Kampala’s prominent office properties has changed hands, but Old Mutual says its insurance customers have nothing to fear from the transfer. The property at Plot 1 Kimathi Avenue has passed to businessman Dr Sudhir Ruparelia, according to Daily Monitor Uganda (direct). Two other properties are being assessed for possible sale, putting the insurer’s real estate holdings under scrutiny while it reassures customers about their policies.

Old Mutual Holdings Plc has transferred the Kimathi Avenue property, formerly known as the UAP Insurance Building. The transaction value has not been disclosed. The building was associated with UAP Insurance before the company relocated its head office to Nakawa Business Park in 2016. Its transfer changes the ownership of a recognisable property in Kampala’s central business district.

A property shift, not a change to policies

The central distinction, Old Mutual says, is who owns the properties and what they support. The assets being transferred or reviewed are held at shareholder level, separately from those held by its operating subsidiaries in Uganda. According to the company, the property changes therefore do not reduce the assets backing customer and policyholder commitments or impair its businesses’ ability to make payments when due.

In a statement reported by Daily Monitor Uganda, the insurer also said its Ugandan insurance and investment businesses remained adequately funded and continued to satisfy relevant regulatory requirements. It said everyday operations would carry on normally. Its reassurance covered customers, business partners and the public, with the company stressing that Uganda remained an important market where it intended to keep serving customers, expanding its businesses and investing for the long term.

Old Mutual said the property reshuffle would leave its Ugandan businesses’ financial strength and routine operations unchanged.

The group describes the move as part of a broader effort to manage its investments, rather than a stand-alone property disposal. Its stated aims are to strengthen its balance sheet—the account of what it owns and owes—improve investment returns and reduce how heavily its holdings are concentrated in property. It also wants to direct capital towards areas it believes offer better returns over time.

Two possible sales remain undecided

Nakawa Business Park and Nakawa House are included in that review, but neither should be treated as a completed sale. Old Mutual said both were being evaluated for possible disposal. It has not disclosed whether either property will ultimately be sold or whether any agreement has been reached with prospective buyers. That leaves a clear difference between the completed Kimathi Avenue transfer and the two potential transactions.

Nakawa Business Park has particular relevance because it has housed some of Old Mutual’s operations. Even so, the company has drawn the same boundary around the properties under review: they are shareholder-owned holdings, distinct from the assets supporting its regulated insurance businesses. Customers should continue to receive normal services, the insurer said.

The next development to watch is whether the Nakawa review turns into actual sales. For now, the disclosed changes stop at the Kimathi Avenue transfer, while the future of the two Nakawa properties remains open. Old Mutual’s message is that managing those property investments and meeting policyholder obligations remain separate matters.