Billionaire Sudhir Ruparelia acquires Old Mutual's Kampala building

Billionaire Sudhir Ruparelia has bought Old Mutual's commercial building on Kimathi Avenue in Kampala's central business district, adding another landmark property to one of East Africa's largest private real estate portfolios.

The building, long known as the UAP Insurance Building, sits on Plot 1 Kimathi Avenue and was sold for an undisclosed sum, PML Daily reported, citing people familiar with the transaction.

The property was once the Kampala headquarters of UAP Insurance Uganda and was also the registered address of UAP Properties Uganda. UAP Old Mutual moved its insurance operations to Nakawa Business Park on Old Port Bell Road in 2016, but the Kimathi Avenue building stayed tied to the group's property interests for years afterward.

The purchase adds to a property empire that Ruparelia holds mostly through Meera Investments. Crane Management Services, the Ruparelia Group's property manager, oversees more than 450 properties, including offices, hotels, homes and shopping space.

The group has grown through both new construction and the purchase of existing buildings. Its developments include Kingdom Kampala, Pearl Business Park and Windsor House.

Ruparelia has also been a regular buyer of buildings sold under pressure. In October 2020, Meera Investments paid $5 million for Simbamanyo House on Lumumba Avenue after Equity Bank put it up for auction. The building houses Uganda's Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development and was later renamed Gender & Labour House. In 2024, Ruparelia and his wife, Jyotsna, bought the 14-story Lotis Towers in Nakasero for about $6 million after an auction by dfcu Bank and renamed it Arie Towers.

Ruparelia's holdings also include Speke Resort Munyonyo on the shores of Lake Victoria and a string of hotels, schools and businesses across Uganda. He is Uganda's best-known businessman and one of the few East African entrepreneurs Forbes has ranked as a billionaire.

The Kimathi Avenue deal comes as Kampala's office market divides between newer, well-run buildings and older stock. Average rents for Grade A offices rose to $17 per square meter a month in the first half of 2026, from $16.50 a year earlier, according to Knight Frank Uganda. Rents for lower-grade AB offices fell to about $14 from $14.50. Occupancy averaged 87% in the best buildings and 83% in Grade AB properties.

Knight Frank described the trend as a "flight to quality," with tenants paying more attention to building quality, layouts, management and parking. It said more than 130,000 square meters of new office space is in the pipeline and that much of the current demand comes from businesses moving between buildings rather than new tenants entering the market. Older buildings face longer vacancies and pressure to refurbish, offer more flexible leases or cut rents.