REPUBLIC Financial Holdings Limited (RFHL) is now one step closer to expanding its reach within the Caribbean region. The Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB) has approved the application for the transfer of the assets and liabilities of the Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS) to RFHL in Anguilla, the Commonwealth of Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia and St Vincent and the Grenadines, pursuant to Section 43 of the Banking Act of 2015 that governs the various territories.
The ECCB made the announcement in a September 6, 2019, news release after its Monetary Council met on the same day to discuss the ECCB’s assessment of the Republic Group’s application to acquire BNS operations in ECCB member countries.
The ECCB has said that it believes that the corporate banking record of the Republic Group and its extensive network of correspondent banks will bode well for the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union (ECCU) banking sector. RFHL Chairman, Ronald F. de C.Harford, said, “This is a crucial and promising step toward an even brighter and more expansive future for the Republic Group. We appreciate the ECCB’s faith in our Group’s potential to be of great benefit to our other Caribbean counterparts, through this transaction.”
In November of 2018, the Republic Group announced that it had entered into an agreement to acquire the BNS banking operations in various territories. The execution of the agreement signalled the commencement of a transaction that remains subject to all regulatory and other customary approvals and conditions.
This approval is the most recent of those gained by RFHL since the announcement. Previous approvals include a letter of “No Objection” from the Central Bank of Curacao and St Maarten and approval from the Central Bank of Trinidad and Tobago (CBTT).
As RFHL works with all regulators for finalisation of the transaction, the Group remains committed to working with all stakeholders to achieve a swift and successful closure.