Jun 2008 Financial News

Jamaica market leads Sagicor profit centres

Jun 23, 2008

NEVER MIND the waning strength of Jamaica's dollar, it is still a strong performer in life insurance and investment banking and continues to lead the profit standing of Sagicor Financial Corporation.

As at December 31, Sagicor's Jamaican operations had pumped in 39 per cent of the group's US$772.9 million revenue, the highest to be posted to the Barbadian-based company by geographical segment.

And, said Sagicor chief financial officer Philip Osborne recently, there was no plan to contract Jamaican operations although the jurisdiction had the weakest dollar value within the group compared to Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados, United Kingdom, United States, and the Eastern Caribbean.

"We have two very significant businesses there: Sagicor Life Jamaica, the No. 1 life insurance company in Jamaica, and PanCaribbean Financial Services, a major investment bank," Osborne told BARBADOS BUSINESS AUTHORITY following Sagicor's 2007 investor briefing at Hilton Barbados.

"We have majority interest in those two companies; they are very significant entities in themselves and hence constitute the Jamaica performance of Sagicor group," Osborne added.

In terms of net earnings, Jamaica raked in US$45.8 million for 2007, US$3.7 million more than 2006.

"There is a fairly wide product range [and] competent Jamaican management that is familiar with the environment and is managing the business accordingly," Osborne stressed.

Meanwhile Ravi Rambarran, Sagicor's executive vice-president, international division, noted that as the group expanded within the region and beyond, "you would see that contribution declining because the company is diversifying".

"Last year [Jamaica] contributed about a third but that percentage has come down from previous years; it used to contribute up to 50 per cent profitability to the group," Rambarran pointed out. (SR)

Nation News Barbados
Website: http://www.nationnews.com/story/93761510835399.php
June 23, 2008