Jan 2010 Financial News

RBC's US$2.2-billion RBTT acquisition in integration phase

Jan 22, 2010

THE US$2.2-billion RBC acquisition of Trinidadian banking house Royal Bank Trinidad and Tobago (RBTT) is now in the integration phase, with executives confirming the official merge is "soon to come".

It means the two companies are closer to becoming fully acquainted with the new operation and how things will be run from here on out. According to RBC spokeswoman Jan Knowles, the change has even led to senior management from both organisations crossing waters to take up residence in partner territories.

"We're trying to see how we're going to come together across the Caribbean.The bank is about two or there times our size, so now we're so much bigger [and] there's more we can do.

"We were in nine countries and now we're in 20 countries in the region. We went from being the sixth largest bank in the English-speaking Caribbean to the second largest."

Knowles confirmed that there would be no name-change for its local operations, indicating that it was more than likely that Royal Bank of Trinidad and Tobago (RBTT) would take on the Royal Bank of Canada name.

The acquisition now places the RBC brand in Jamaica, T&T and the Dutch Caribbean.

The buyout, first launched over a year ago, extended RBC's presence in 18 countries and territories across the region and allows RBC the use of Trinidad as a launching pad into the emerging South American market. Still, there's the current challenge of managing the present business of more than US $13.7 billion in assets and a combined Caribbean workforce of 7,000 employees.

The Canadian parent moved to reassure those employees here in The Bahamas and across the RBC chain that jobs would not be eliminated as a result of the move.


Source:
Inderia Saunders
Jamaica Observer
Friday, January 22, 2010

http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/business/RBTT_7326125