Mar 2007 Financial News

FCIB says it does not wish to delist

Mar 15, 2007

FCIB, the Canadian-owned bank based in Barbados, has stated it “does not wish to delist in any of the four markets where it is currently listed.”

The bank was responding to a letter written by a minority shareholder headlined “Will FCIB delist?” published in last week’s Business Guardian.

FCIB’s corporate secretary Ella Hoyos wrote that the bank “wishes to maintain a strong minority” in the bank and that it “has no interest in acquiring the minority and has publicly restated its interest in maintaining a strong minority” in FCIB.

Hoyos said that Barclays Bank, which sold its stake in FCIB last year, “does not now own any shares” in the bank and that the largest minority shareholder in the bank was the National Insurance Scheme of Barbados.

Hoyos did not respond to the letter writer’s suggestion that FCIB could make a more attractive offer to the minority shareholders.

The letter pointed out that FCIB was trading at $11.40 on the T&T Stock Exchange and “there has been no official confirmation by either FCIB or RBTT that the possible merger/acquisition is off.”

An acquisition of RBTT by FCIB would significantly to the value of FCIB’s stock.

This is the second time that FCIB has responded to a letter from the minority shareholder, Peter Permell. The bank responded to a letter headlined “FCIB’s grave oversight” carried on February 8. Also, chairman of the SEC, Osborne Nurse, responded to a Permel letter in the February 15 edition, headlined “FCIB has discharged its obligations.”

Page 15
The Trinidad Guardian
Business Magazine
Thursday, March 15, 2007.
http://www.guardian.co.tt/bussguardian9.html