FirstCaribbean International Bank has created history by passing the US $4 billion loan mark in total lendings to its personal and business customers.
In acknowledging this remarkable achievement, Chief Executive Officer of FirstCaribbean International Bank, Charles Pink, congratulated the sales and support teams in the Bank that contributed to this accomplishment and thanked FirstCaribbean’s customers for their business, states a press release.
‘This is a major achievement and I wanted to thank our teams who got us here. Our performance in loan growth continues to trend upwards. This latest achievement takes us nearer to our goal of becoming the bank of first choice for Caribbean people. Standard & Poor’s recently complimented us on our prudent credit risk policies. This speaks to quality of our loan portfolio as well as quantity. It means our team is making the right decisions when assessing loan applications; providing Caribbean people with the financing they need, while still making good decisions on how we lend our depositors’ and shareholders’ money. I am very proud of the FirstCaribbean team.’
Executive Director of Corporate Banking, Mr. Horace Cobham, said that such an impressive performance identifies FirstCaribbean International Bank as the largest bank in terms of loan portfolio.
‘Our loan book is spread across three segments: Retail, Corporate and International Banking, and within those three strategic units our business is stretched across almost every industry in the Caribbean. Our balance sheet strength is giving us the platform to provide financing for persons of all walks of life.
‘Notwithstanding our success, we are always open for business and are ready and able to meet the financing needs of the Caribbean. We are a Caribbean bank that is here for the Caribbean. We will be using all of our international connections and financial strength to deliver value added for the Caribbean,’ he said,
Meanwhile, Executive Director of Retail Banking, Julian Murillo is pleased with the growth in loans within the retail sector.
‘This was primarily in mortgages, and proves that we are the number one mortgage bank in the eyes of the customer. It’s a signal that the packages we are putting together for our customers – excellent rates, incentives, and an ever-improving level of customer service – are finding favour with our customers, who are looking for the total package, and not just the cheapest rates. We have seen significant growth in Jamaica, the Bahamas, and the Cayman Islands. We have a strong product and that is primarily the reason behind this significant growth.’
He added that Retail, Corporate, and International Banking staff demonstrated excellent drive and focus in spearheading new business development, while the support functions that enable the sales force to deliver the product to the customer, have been working well together as a team.
‘Our new focus on separating sales and customer service is netting us great results – our sales team are concentrating on putting together the right packages for our customers, and our customer service personnel are ever ready to provide back up – it’s a perfect combination. In addition, our recent marketing campaigns have been fresh and community spirited and I believe that this has gone a long way in the minds of the consumer.’
In terms of consumer loans, Murillo revealed that the market is extremely competitive with new entrants in the hire purchase area taking their fair share of customers. ‘In the last six months, we have had tremendous success with the development of this side of our portfolio. There has been a strong sales focus by staff and a very strong product offering which customers discovered offer great value.’
Who they are
FirstCaribbean is the result of the combination of two complementary and leading financial services businesses in the Caribbean – CIBC West Indies Holdings Limited and Barclays Bank PLC. FirstCaribbean aims to offer its customers enhanced products and improved and extended access to banking services. FirstCaribbean focuses on the needs of the businesses and people of the Caribbean while delivering the global reach of its founding institutions. FirstCaribbean is the largest locally listed bank in the Caribbean based on a market capitalization of US$2.4 billion. FirstCaribbean currently serves 16 countries, from Belize, to The Bahamas to Barbados. It has 100 retail branches, corporate and international banking centres; some US $9 billion in assets; 3,100 staff; and over 700,000 active accounts. From inception, the Bank has been rate as ‘A- Stable’ by Standard & Poors – the highest rating of any commercial bank in the English-speaking Caribbean. In 2004, FirstCaribbean was named as ‘Bank of the Year’ by The Banker magazine and ‘Best Emerging Market Bank’ by Global Finance magazine.
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