03282019 BUSINESS

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business@tribunemedia.net

THURSDAY, MARCH 28, 2019

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Bank competition woes hit financial services access By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net LACK of competition in the Bahamian commercial banking industry has created barriers to accessing financial services, an Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) report is arguing. The IDB’s Caribbean Quarterly Bulletin for the first three months of 2019, released yesterday, said the absence of greater “price competition” among the six Bahamas-based commercial banks had increased lending rates and spreads that made products too costly to access for some Bahamians. “The cost of financial services reflected in rising lending rates limits access to credit and strengthens barriers to financial inclusion,” the IDB report said. “Spreads between deposit and lending rates increased by almost three percent from 2010 to an estimated level of 10.4 percent in 2018, roughly two percent higher than countries in the Latin America and Caribbean region. “The oligopolistic nature of the commercial banking market limits price competition within a profitable sector. Return on equity (ROE) levels were favourably measured at 6.8 percent in 2017, slightly below the 7.9 percent level at the end of 2016.” More companies in The

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THE government yesterday hit back at its detractors by arguing it was “on the money” with both the timing and value of its $65m Grand Lucayan deal. Dionisio D’Aguilar, minister of tourism and aviation, lost little time in pointing out that the sale price agreed with the ITM Group/ Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines joint venture is exactly the same as the sum the government paid to purchase the resort from Hutchison Whampoa last September. Implying that there will be no loss to the taxpayer

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

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HE winning Grand Lucayan bidder was yesterday said to be “very close to perfection” with its “game-changing destination” solution for resurrecting Freeport’s tourism economy. Dionisio D’Aguilar, minister of tourism and aviation, voiced optimism that Grand Bahama is now “on the path to the promised land” as he confirmed previous Tribune Business revelations that the ITM Group/Royal Caribbean joint venture had been selected as the resort’s preferred purchaser. Speaking after the government signed a Letter of Intent (LOI) with the cruise line and Mexican port developer, triggering exclusive negotiations between the parties for the Grand Lucayan’s sale, Mr D’Aguilar compared their proposal’s potential impact to the effect Disney World has had on Orlando. He explained that it envisions combining Port Lucaya and Freeport

as a result, Mr D’Aguilar said the agreement with the Mexican port developer and cruise line had put the government “on a path to hopefully realise a return on our investment”. Branding it “a good deal all around”, Mr D’Aguilar said the Grand Lucayan’s resurrection - and combination with Freeport Harbour to turn the area into a destination product - was a key element in the government delivering on its promises to revive Grand Bahama’s economy. He added that the ITM/ Royal Caribbean deal, for which a Heads of

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Work visa reform to ‘jumpstart’ tech hub By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net IMMIGRATION reforms tabled by the government in parliament yesterday were hailed as “a way to jumpstart” ambitions for Grand Bahama to become a “technology hub”. Dr Donovan Moxey, who headed the governmentappointed technology hub steering committee, told Tribune Business that the legislation to create the “BH-1B work visa” was

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Lucayan winner ‘close to perfect’

Govt ‘on money’ with $65m Grand Lucayan disposal By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

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DR DONOVAN MOXEY “huge” for The Bahamas given the “strong signal” it sends to the industry and its highly-skilled workforce.

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• Govt signs LOI with ITM/Royal Caribbean • $195m first phase to create 2,000 jobs • Minister: GB ‘on path to promised land’ • Likens project impact to Disney’s

MINISTER of Tourism, the Hon Dionisio D’Aguilar, seated third left, along with Minister of State for Grand Bahama, Senator Kwasi Thompson, seated second left, was joined by Michael Scott, seated centre, chairman of Lucayan Renewal Holdings Ltd; Russell Benford, seated, third right, vice-president of Government Relations/Americas for Royal Caribbean; Mauricio Hamui, seated second right, chief executive officer of ITM, along with Board Members of Lucayan Renewal Holdings, standing, for LOI signing for the purchase of the Grand Lucayan resort, in the Office of the Prime Minister yesterday. Photo: Lisa Davis/BIS Harbour into a “unique des- period, creating around plans for Freeport in early tination” that will set Grand 2,000 jobs. It ultimately February, the proposal Bahama apart from its com- plans to bring an extra two focuses on developing petitors, not just Florida and million cruise passengers water-based adventure other Caribbean nations, to Grand Bahama every theme parks at both Freebut Nassau/Paradise Island year by transforming the port Harbour and around and the Family Islands. area into “a world class the resort. The Grand The ITM Group/Royal destination”. Lucayan will be upgraded to Caribbean consortium is As previously detailed “five-star hotel accommodaproposing to invest $195m by Tribune Business, tion”, and feature multiple in phase one of its pro- which exclusively revealed SEE PAGE 4 ject alone over a 24-month the joint venture and its

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DESMOND BANNISTER

Digital building plan submission to come in 2019 By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net A CABINET minister yesterday pledged that the electronic submission and approval of building plans “will happen this year” once the necessary funding is in place. Desmond Bannister, minister of works, acknowledged to Tribune Business that the planned process needed to improve as “too many people depend on us to continue operating the way we do”. Responding to concerns raised by the Institute of Bahamian Architects (IBA) that efforts to upgrade the Building Controls Department’s practices “to the 21st century” were constantly being rejected, Mr Bannister said the department itself had already bought into the need for change. The IBA, in a Wednesday statement, reiterated its call for licensed Bahamian architects to be able to submit plans and drawings electronically, and make the approvals process both more efficient and less costly

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