TORONTO, July 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ - Banro Corporation ("Banro" or
the "Company") (AMEX - "BAA"; TSX Venture Exchange - "BAA") is pleased to
announce that it has increased its total gold resources in the Measured and
Indicated category to 2.45 million ounces, an increase of 21 percent or
436,000 ounces. The Company also has total Inferred resources of 5.56 million
ounces of gold. This resource base is located at the Company's four, wholly-
owned gold projects located on the Twangiza-Namoya gold belt in the Democratic
Republic of the Congo (the "DRC").
    This upgrade in Banro's Measured and Indicated Resource category results
from exploration work recently conducted at the Company's Namoya project. A
total of 436,000 ounces of gold (4,560,400 tonnes grading 2.97 g/t Au) has
been upgraded to the higher confidence Indicated Mineral Resource category. In
addition there are also Inferred Mineral Resources of 657,000 ounces of gold
(7,818,700 tonnes grading 2.61 g/t Au) at Namoya.
    Today's announcement follows the Company's strategy of unlocking value by
delineating potentially low cost, open-pit ounces at a cost significantly
below that of the industry. It is also in line with Banro's objective of
attaining Measured and Indicated resources of 4 million ounces by the end of
2005 and 6 million ounces by the end of 2006. The Company plans to
continuously replace resources in the Inferred category by delineating
additional resources along the known strike of existing deposits.


                      Namoya Mineral Resource Estimate

    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
                              Indicated                     Inferred
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
    DEPOSIT            Tonnes     Au   Ounces(x)    Tonnes     Au   Ounces(x)
                                 (g/t)                        (g/t)
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Mwendamboko       2154100    3.84    266000    3836300    2.91    359000
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Kakula            1936300    2.11    131000    2915900    1.94    182000
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Namoya Summit      470000    2.58     39000     356500    2.53     29000
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Muviringu                                       710000    3.80     87000
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Totals            4560400    2.97    436000    7818700    2.61    657000
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------

                                  Ounces(x) rounded to the nearest '000
    (using a 1.0 g/t Au cut-off)

    The above Mineral Resource estimates come at the end of the Company's
first phase of exploration completed in June along the Mwendamboko-Kakula-
Namoya Summit-Muviringu mineralized trend at the Namoya project. The
exploration objective was to upgrade a proportion of the previously outlined
Inferred Resource by accessing and re-sampling the extensive development of
historical adits and confirming the previous grades and thicknesses.
    Over 40 percent of the historical adits and trenches have been sampled
with results verifying the historical data, with little variability and with
no evidence of bias between the historical data and the sampling and
analytical methods undertaken by Banro in its evaluation program. The Company
therefore considers the historical channel sampling, geological mapping and
assaying results to have been adequately correlated, allowing these results to
be employed in the estimation of Indicated Mineral Resources in areas where
close-spaced adits have influenced the modelling and estimation processes.
    The above adit and trench sampling was undertaken at approximately one
metre intervals and the samples analysed for gold by fire assay using a 50g
sample at S.G.S.'s accredited Mwanza Geochemical Laboratory in Tanzania.
Internationally recognised standards and blanks were inserted as part of the
Company's QA/QC analytical procedures.
    Gold grades have been determined using ordinary kriging into a
3-Dimensional block model constrained by wireframes in areas where historical
adits have influenced the modelling and estimation processes. The ore body
models were constrained within the wireframe with primary block dimensions of
10 metres along the strike and cross structure directions, and 5 metres in the
vertical direction. Higher grade values for the various mineral domains have
been statistically cut in a range from 10 to 85 g/t Au with their spatial
occurrence verified in relation to the surrounding samples. Tonnages and
grades are reported using a 1.0 g/t Au cut-off.
    The upgrade announced today is the first in a two-stage process of
converting Inferred resource ounces at Namoya to the Indicated category by
November 2005. Banro plans to commence a core drilling program in early August
to verify the previous drilling at Namoya with the goal of upgrading a major
portion of the remaining Inferred Resource of 657,000 ounces into the
Indicated Resource category.
    The Cardiff, United Kingdom office of independent geological consultants
Steffen, Robertson and Kirsten (UK) Ltd ("S.R.K"), who undertook the previous
resource determinations for Namoya (see the Company's press release dated
February 28, 2005), has reviewed this report and concurs with its findings.
The detailed mineral resource report on Namoya will be filed on Sedar and on
the Company website within 30 days of this release.
    The Mineral Resource estimates have been prepared in accordance with the
Canadian National Instrument 43-101 based on information compiled by Banro's
Mineral Resources Manager, Dan Bansah, who is a Member of The Australasian
Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (Aus.I.M.M). Mr. Bansah has over 16 years
experience in the determination of gold mineral resources and is a Qualified
Person as defined in Canadian National Instrument 43-101.
    Commenting on these results at Namoya, Peter Cowley, President and C.E.O.
of the Company, said: "It is very encouraging that the adit sampling results
at Namoya confirm the previous historical data for the mineralization sampled
by the close spaced, adit sampling program. A core drilling program is now
planned to verify the previous drilling at Namoya, especially below the adits
and for infilling, so that a major proportion of the remaining Inferred
Resource of 657,000 ounces can be upgraded into the Indicated Resource
category.
    "The Company has now increased its Measured and Indicated Resource
categories by 21% to 2.45 million ounces at its four projects in the Maniema
and South Kivu Provinces. The verification of the historical data at Namoya
bodes well for the future upgrading of the current 5.48 million ounces of
Inferred Resources on our four gold projects. Moving forward, we plan to
progressively verify the historical data, as well as locate new zones of
mineralization as we proceed with our exploration programs outside of the
known deposits."

    Qualified Person
    ----------------
    The exploration results disclosed by this press release have been
reviewed, verified (including sampling, analytical and test data) and compiled
by the Company's geological staff, which includes a "qualified person" (as
such term is defined in National Instrument 43-101), Peter Cowley, F.I.M.M.M.,
the Company's President and C.E.O.

    Banro is a Canadian-based gold exploration company focused on the
development of four major, wholly-owned gold projects along the 210 kilometre-
long Twangiza-Namoya gold belt in the South Kivu and Maniema provinces of the
DRC. Led by a proven management team with extensive gold and African
experience, Banro's strategy is to unlock shareholder value by increasing and
developing its significant gold assets in a socially and environmentally
responsible manner.

    Cautionary Note to U.S. Investors: The United States Securities and
Exchange Commission (the "SEC") permits U.S. mining companies, in their
filings with the SEC, to disclose only those mineral deposits that a company
can economically and legally extract or produce. Certain terms are used in
this press release, such as "measured" "indicated" and "inferred resources",
that the SEC guidelines strictly prohibit U.S. registered companies from
including in their filings with the SEC. U.S. Investors are urged to consider
closely the disclosure in the Company's Form 40-F Registration Statement, File
No. 001-32399, which may be secured from the Company, or from the SEC's
website at http://www.sec.gov/edgar.shtml.

    Forward-Looking Statements: This press release contains forward-looking
statements that are based on the Company's current expectations and estimates.
Forward-looking statements are frequently characterized by words such as
"plan," "expect," "project," "intend," "believe," "anticipate", "estimate" and
other similar words or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or
"will" occur, and include, without limitation, statements regarding potential
mineralization and resources, exploration results and future plans and
objectives of the Company. Such forward-looking statements involve known and
unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events
or results to differ materially from estimated or anticipated events or
results implied or expressed in such forward-looking statements. Factors that
could cause such differences include changes in world gold markets and equity
markets, political developments in the DRC, changes to regulations affecting
the Company's activities, uncertainties relating to the availability and costs
of financing needed in the future, the uncertainties involved in interpreting
drilling results and other ecological data and the other risks involved in the
gold exploration and development industry. Any forward-looking statement
speaks only as of the date on which it is made and, except as may be required
by applicable securities laws, the Company disclaims any intent or obligation
to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new
information, future events or results or otherwise. Forward-looking statements
are not guarantees of future performance and accordingly undue reliance should
not be put on such statements due to the inherent uncertainty therein.

    The TSX Venture Exchange does not accept responsibility for the adequacy
    or accuracy of this press release.

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