Bank of Uganda Restores RTGS and ACH Payment Systems After Major Upgrade

The Bank of Uganda has officially brought its core financial systems back online following the completion of a planned modernization exercise. Both the Real-Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) and the Automated Clearing House (ACH) services resumed normal operations on Monday morning.

The temporary shutdown began on Thursday evening to facilitate the crucial technical overhaul. According to the central bank, the upgrade forms a vital part of a broader regional integration initiative aimed at modernizing Uganda’s financial networks and aligning them with international standards.

RTGS, which functions as the Uganda National Interbank Settlement System, serves as the backbone for high-value and time-critical transactions. Data highlights the immense scale of the network, showing that RTGS handled 2.4 million transactions valued at Shs963.4 trillion in the twelve months leading up to June 2026. Meanwhile, the ACH handles routine and bulk payments such as salaries, pensions, cheque clearings, and electronic credit transfers, processing trillions of shillings monthly.

Because these systems form the core of Uganda’s national payment infrastructure, even a brief interruption requires careful coordination among financial institutions, businesses, and government entities. With the systems now fully functional, commercial banks are expected to process any pending transactions and clear backlogs accumulated during the four-day maintenance window.

The central bank has advised members of the public with transaction-specific inquiries to reach out directly to their respective financial institutions for assistance. Stakeholders have been commended for their patience and cooperation during the modernization process.

Read more details in the Daily Monitor report.