Ugandan gospel artist, entrepreneur and proprietor of Euro Gold Refinery, Benard Feni, popularly known as Mungu Feni, has won two honours at the Business Excellence Awards 2026, days after his release on police bond amid an investigation into an alleged $3.3 million gold fraud.

Mungu Feni was named Entrepreneur of the Year, while his company, Euro Gold Refinery Ltd, received the Platinum Winner award for Best Natural Resources and Extractives 2026. The awards, organised by Consumer Publications Uganda Ltd, recognise businesses based on consumer-driven assessments of quality, service value, integrity and innovation.

The ceremony was presided over by Uganda’s Vice President, Jessica Alupo, at Hotel Africana. In a speech delivered on her behalf by Andrew Matovu, director of the Presidential Initiative on Banana Industrial Development, Alupo urged businesses to maintain high standards and treat recognition as a responsibility to sustain excellence and mentor other enterprises.

Euro Gold Refinery expands local gold processing

Feni attributed the recognition to transparency, local ownership and job creation, describing the award as a tribute to young Ugandans pursuing entrepreneurship.

Euro Gold Refinery, which Feni describes as Uganda’s first fully locally owned gold refinery, processes gold to 99.9% purity, equivalent to 24-carat gold, using Italian eco-friendly technology.

More than 70% of its workforce comprises Ugandans, according to the businessman.

Feni credited the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development for initiatives supporting the mining industry but identified limited access to financing and lengthy licensing procedures as persistent obstacles for indigenous miners.

He warned that inadequate domestic financing forces some Ugandan entrepreneurs to surrender as much as 70% of their shareholding to foreign investors. Greater participation by local banks, he argued, would help domestic businesses expand while retaining ownership.

Gold fraud investigation shadows award win

The recognition comes amid a gold fraud investigation involving businessmen, gold-trading companies and individuals accused of using military connections to facilitate disputed transactions.

Mungu Feni was arrested on September 8, 2026, and detained at the Special Investigations Unit in Kireka alongside three other suspects. The arrests followed a directive from President Yoweri Museveni after two Sudanese investors reported losses involving a gold transaction.

He was released on police bond on October 14, 2026, reportedly after agreeing to cooperate with investigators. The allegations remain subject to investigation, and his release on bond does not establish guilt.

Mungu Feni adds to growing list of honours

The latest awards add to Mungu Feni’s growing collection of recognitions. He received the Best Innovative and Extraordinary Entrepreneur 2026 award from the Uganda National Innovative Graduates Wealth Creation Association.

His Mungu Feni Foundation has also been recognised for community development, winning Best Community Transformation Organisation in East Africa at the East Africa Brand Quality Awards.

At the West Nile Quality Brand Awards 2025, the foundation received the Quality Excellence Award – Platinum, Best Community Development NGO and Best Local NGO for youth empowerment and humanitarian work.

The latest recognition reinforces Mungu Feni’s profile in Uganda’s business and community development sectors, even as the gold fraud investigation presents a separate challenge to his public standing.