11162017%20business

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THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 16, 2017

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Near-15% growth boost if collateral bar slashed

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

T

he Bahamian economy will enjoy a 15 per cent GDP growth surge if lenders reduce collateral requirements for business borrowers to world minimum levels.

An International Monetary Fund (IMF) book, Unleashing Growth and Strengthening Resilience in the Caribbean, found that removing impediments to the private sector’s credit

* IMF book eyes world minimum impact * Bahamas’ credit access barriers high * Nation near bottom with 34% SME access access would unleash a significant “phased” GDP expansion in the Bahamas and wider region.

In the Bahamas’ case, the book found that while the credit access barriers for business were relatively high compared to rival Caribbean nations, those able to obtain debt

financing were usually able to obtain competitive costs (interest rates).

Only Jamaica, at 30 per cent, has a smaller percentage of small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) able to access credit than the Bahamas’ 34 per cent. And this nation was in the ‘middle

of the pack’ with collateral requirements equal to 118 per cent of a loan’s value.

“The Bahamas has higher collateral requirements and very few firms with access to credit, but very low interest rate spreads,” the IMF book

SEE PAGE 8

Bank of the Bahamas reveals 30 lay-offs

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

* DOWNSIZING FOLLOWS TWO BRANCH CLOSINGS * PART OF TROUBLED BANK’S EFFICIENCIES SEARCH

BANK of the Bahamas (BOB) yesterday confirmed around 30 jobs will be lost as part of its bid to return to sustained profitability following recent branch closures.

The BISX-listed institution said the lay-offs were related to the closures of its Exuma and Eight Mile Rock branches, plus

a drive to cut costs as part of its turnaround strategy.

The Eight Mile Rock branch in Grand Bahama has already closed, while Exuma will shut its doors on December 31.

BOB’s executive management, in a statement, said the bank had started “the right-sizing of

EX-MINISTER: $750M BOND TO ‘SLOW ECONOMIC GROWTH’

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net A FORMER finance minister yesterday warned that the Government’s $750 million bond could “slow down economic growth” by further increasing the banks’ $1.7 billion in excess liquidity.

James Smith, who ran the Ministry of Finance from 2002-2007, told Tribune Business that he “cannot agree at all” with the Minnis administration’s decision to repay $300 million in Bahamian dollar-denominated debt with the bond’s foreign currency proceeds.

* B$300M PAYOUT TO EXACERBATE EXCESS LIQUIDITY * ‘NOT CONVINCED’ INSUFFICIENT BAHAMAS DEMAND * BRANDS 6% BOND’S RATE AS ‘NOT GOOD AT ALL’ He said the repayment’s effect would be to increase the money supply and already-high surplus liquidity, which represents excess assets that

SEE PAGE 4

CHRISTIE GOV’T BREACHED ‘BUDGETARY ALLOWANCE’

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net THE Deputy Prime Minister yesterday accused the Christie administration of breaching its Parliamentary-approved spending limits, revealing he had to defend its actions before international investors.

K P Turnquest told the House of Assembly that he defended the former government’s multi-million dollar deficit overshoots, and the addition of $2.2 billion to the national debt, because he could “not allow

* DPM: WE HAD TO DEFEND THEM TO INVESTORS * PLP: BOND DEMAND SHOWS ‘CUPBOARD NOT BARE’ * NO ADDITION TO DEBT BEYOND $722M BORROW anyone to speak ill of the Government of the Bahamas”. He argued that the Minnis administration had

SEE PAGE 5

departments and units this week in another strategic move to improve operational efficiencies, with the ultimate goal of setting the bank back on a path to sustainable profitability”.

“The bank anticipates that less than 30 members of staff will be affected throughout its operations,

including the closure of branches,” it added. “This follows recent decisions taken by the Board of Directors to rationalise the bank’s branch network.....

“These are extremely difficult decisions to make primarily because they hold implications for continued employment of members of our team, and impact many areas of the bank. However, these

SEE PAGE 5

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$750m bond ‘makes compelling case’ for S&P ‘junk’ upgrade

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net THE Government will use its successful $750 million bond issue to “make the most compelling case we can” for Standard & Poor’s (S&P) to restore the Bahamas’ investment grade credit rating.

K P Turnquest, the Deputy Prime Minister, told Tribune Business that the rating agency - which is due to visit the Bahamas before month’s end - will have “a hard time justifying” the continuation of this nation’s’ ‘junk’ status.

He argued that the $2.8 billion in ‘investor indications’, which was almost four times’ the bond offering target, plus recent upward revisions to economic growth numbers provided strong grounds for S&P to upgrade the Bahamas’ rating.

“To me, I think they will have a hard time justifying that strong interest we got against not raising the overall rating,” Mr Turnquest told Tribune Business of S&P. “If we got that kind of interest, our debt must be worth something.

“We’ll certainly be making the most compelling case we can between that and the GDP numbers.”

* DPM: ‘HARD TIME JUSTIFYING’ JUNK STATUS * FOREIGN DEBT AT 30%; GOV’T NOT WANTING HIGHER * PLEDGES TO RAISE $570M ‘BALANCE’ LOCALLY

TURNQUEST S&P downgraded the Bahamas’ sovereign creditworthiness to ‘junk’ status at Christmas 2016, citing weaker-than-expected economic growth; a failure to hit fiscal consolidation targets; and the delayed Baha Mar opening as its rationale for doing so.

However, the Minnis administration is clearly hoping that its successful capital raising in the international markets,

SEE PAGE 9

PAGE 2, Thursday, November 16, 2017

THE TRIBUNE

BTVI OUTFITTED FOR RENEWABLE COURSES

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

A BAHAMIAN renewable energy provider has begun to outfit the Bahamas Technical and Vocational Institute (BTVI) to offer solar courses.

Philip Holdom, president of Alternative Energy Supply, and chief technology officer of Sustainable Energy, is readying BTVI to offer courses ranging from design and installation to understanding solar principles, capacity, monitoring and maintenance. He has himself agreed to teach the initial series of courses based on a curriculum he created in conjunction with BTVI. “The potential for anyone who is interested in studying renewables, including solar, is unlimited,” said Mr Holdom, who installed his first renewable energy

source on two Family Islands nearly three decades ago.

“For any young person who is deciding on a career, or anyone in the construction or engineering fields now who wants a new challenge, I encourage them to look at studying renewables.

“As fossil fuels are eventually phased out, and concern with environmental protection plus efficiency, consistency in delivery of power and reliability makes the demand for sustainable energy sources greater, the fields will be wide open for those with the proper skill sets.”

Holdom does not have to work hard to sell prospective students on the value of studying solar.

Students, instructors and support staff, including maintenance personnel, were on hand to receive the equipment

that Alternative Energy Supply and Sustainable Energy are providing, “We were like the new kid on the block and everyone wanted a first-hand peek. It’s great that there is so much interest,” said Mr Holdom.

“The new national energy legislation has opened up the possibility of using multiple solar technologies for the private and public sector. Whether off-grid, grid tie or grid interactive technologies are used, there is an immediate need for people trained in renewable energy, science, math, and system programming.”

The partnership between the consortium and BTVI was announced in September, with the Institute’s president, Robert W. Robertson, welcoming it warmly.

“We are really pleased to have someone of the background and expertise

PHILIP HOLDOM, Alternative Power Supply’s president, and chief technology officer for Sustainable Energy (right), delivers solar panels and extensive equipment to BTVI. Receiving the equipment is Alexander Darville, BTVI dean of construction trades. of Philip Holdom to come into BTVI and do this,” Dr Robertson said, noting that the APS-Sustainable Energy consortium had a combined 50-year installation history in renewable energy, with 370 Mega Watt (MW) of solar installs spread between the Bahamas and Europe.

“This is a trade school, and this is exactly the kind of partnership that provides us with the ability to train those who want to advance their skills, and others who want to train to fill needed positions. There is a lot of growth in this area, and we expect there will be a great response to the offering.”

Levels of certification will range from basic solar theory and installation practices (101) to intermediate and advanced courses in renewable energy design, installation and programming (201 and 301).

Courses are expected to start during the Winter term.

Government drafts new Fisheries Act

By NATARIO MCKENZIE Tribune Business Reporter nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

A Cabinet Minister yesterday said a new Fisheries Act has been drafted, and is now being prepared for

submission to the Cabinet.

Renward Wells, minister of agriculture and fisheries, made the revelation while

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addressing Parliament yesterday. “A new Fisheries Act has been drafted and is being prepared for submission to the Cabinet for parliamentary debate and, hopefully, passage,” he said.

“The draft has incorporated the majority of the new international norms relating to fisheries, such as eco-sensitive norms relating to fisheries management, the UN 2030 Sustainable Development Goals and, in particular, SDG 314 and Food and Agriculture Organisation’s (FAO) Port State Measures to prevent, deter and eliminate illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing.”

Mr Wells said the Department of Marine Resources has recently taken possession of a new Fisheries Management Information System, which was funded and designed by the Food

RENWARD WELLS and Agriculture Organisation (FAO).

“Information obtained in the FISMIS will be used in the formulation of fisheries management plans, and the drafting of appropriate legislation governing the various fisheries comprising the fisheries sector.

The NGO community has played a vital role in regard

to assisting the Government relative to educating the general public concerning fisheries matters,” Mr Wells said.

He added that there were concerns relating to subsidies to the fisheries sector in light of Word Trade Organisation (WTO) provisions.

“Subsidies are required to promote the development of the sector, but the provisions of the WTO negate against the issuance of such by governments because it is viewed as an unfair trade advantage. We would have to look at this issue more closely,” said Mr Wells.

He added that efforts are being made to obtain an eco-label for crawfish exports. “The obtaining of an eco-label would result in exporters receiving the maximum benefits from the export of the resource,” Mr Wells said.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, November 16, 2017, PAGE 3

Tough questions needed at Cable Bahamas’ AGM TONIGHT, Cable Bahamas holds its first annual general meeting (AGM) in 16 months. Shareholders should come prepared to ask the tough questions that management is doing its best to avoid.

Cable Bahamas’ management says it has a good story to tell. While that may be true, the 55 per cent stock price collapse since September 2015 shows that the story management wants to tell is not the one shareholders want to hear. In previous meetings, and in the recent annual report, management has waxed poetic on business models, opportunities and sales growth.

After four straight quarters of losses, however, shareholders just want to hear about the bottom line. They want concrete answers to three pressing concerns: 1) How will Cable repay its soaring debt? 2) When will the Florida and ALIV operations become profitable? and 3) When will dividend payments resume?

Management has an opportunity now to reassure shareholders on these three key points. If they cannot, or will not, shareholders will “vote with their feet” and the stock price will continue to fall.

The first and most important question is about the debt. Even if we take management at its word that Florida and ALIV will be fantastically profitable in the future, it will mean nothing if the company goes bankrupt before that glorious future arrives. It would not be the first time an exciting growth company has grown faster than

LETTER TO BUSINESS EDITOR their balance sheet allowed.

Adding together all of its forms of debt, Cable Bahamas has $436 million in debt versus just $20 million in trailing 12-month EBITDA. Generally, bankers prefer to see a ratio of debt to EBITDA of four times’ or lower - the current 22 times’ is astounding. Fancy models aren’t needed when the numbers are this clear: Cable Bahamas has $97 million in bank debt all due in one lump sum payment in 2019. Currently, they have $56 million in cash.

In the last quarter, however, they burned through $26 million in cash. If Cable Bahamas loses cash every quarter, how will they ever repay the bank? Yes, management has proven adept at refinancing their debt in the past. But with such a weak cash position, they may now be dependent on the good graces of the bankers.

The second question shareholders should ask concerns detailed timetables for when the Florida and Aliv operations will become profitable. We have been told several times about the fantastic internal rate of returns (IRRs) the Florida investments generate. But an IRR calculation includes projected returns over the entire life of an investment. If those returns are being generated in years three, four or five, they may come too late to help the parent company which, frankly, needs cash right now. If that is indeed the

case, shareholders should put pressure on management to stop putting new money into Florida and to conserve cash before it is too late.

Aliv’s early performance is also concerning. Despite the chairman’s declaration that Cable Bahamas has “met all of our financial guidance targets”, Aliv has clearly missed its mark. In March, management projected $23.5 million in Aliv revenues for the year ending June 30, 2017. Instead, they had $12.9 million. By September 30, 2017, they expected to have 88,000 subscribers; instead, they had 85,000.

The problem appears to be unexpectedly tough competition from BTC, which has aggressively lowered prices and deftly copied Aliv’s marketing strategies.

Given Aliv’s big miss on revenues but small miss on subscribers, we can assume that average revenue per user (ARPU) is much lower than expected. In keeping with Cable Bahamas’ code of secrecy, of course, the annual report says nothing about ARPU. With frank answers to the first two questions, shareholders will be better able to answer the third question themselves: When will Cable Bahamas will be able to reinstate a meaningful amount of dividends?

While Bahamian investors are often derided for being overly fond of dividends, the fact is market studies show that dividends comprise a significant portion

THE Bahamas must move to combat international perceptions that it is much slower and expensive to do business in this country, a prominent attorney warned yesterday.

Crystal Sands-Feaste, a Higgs and Johnson partner, while speaking on a panel at the Bahamas Institute of Chartered Accountants (BICA) conference, said: “The reputation that the international community has of the Bahamas; the very first perception that we get, is that

it is more expensive and it is a lot slower in the Bahamas. They ask: Why the Bahamas versus BVI or Cayman?’ The perception is we are slower, more expensive and the processes are uncertain.”

Mrs Sands-Feaste said ‘ease of doing business’ challenges were not only affecting companies currently operating in the Bahamas, but also potential new investors assessing the jurisdiction.

“The challenge to the ease of doing business affects new business coming into the jurisdiction. Clients know some of the good things, but they also know the bad things as well.

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management held a rights offering, diluting the interest of existing shareholders, we subscribed.

When management launched preference share after preference share, increasing debt levels and reducing net income left over for ordinary shareholders, we signed up, again and again.

The time for leniency is now over. Ordinary shareholders have waited 16 months to have their say. This Thursday, management will not be able to duck the tough questions any longer.

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Bahamas urged to combat business ease negativity

By NATARIO MCKENZIE Tribune Business Reporter nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

of an investor’s total return.

In the end, shareholders cannot “cash-in” business models, or revenue or even EBITDA. Shareholders cash-in dividend cheques.

Bahamian investors like Cable’s management team.

They are smart, personable and aggressive. We are proud of them for building a world-class telecommunications network in the Bahamas, and for seeking to do the same in Florida.

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Mrs Sands-Feaste added that the ‘ease of doing business’ is not only a business concern, but affects the entire economy.

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PAGE 4, Thursday, November 16, 2017

THE TRIBUNE

Ex-minister: $750m bond to ‘slow economic growth’ FROM PAGE 1 Bahamas-based commercial banks are unable to lend out because they cannot find qualified borrowers locally.

The increased money supply, Mr Smith added, threatens to further depress deposit rates that are already close to zero, while providing no incentive for banks to get the economy moving through increased lending.

The now-CFAL chairman added that he was “not totally convinced” by the Government’s argument that there was insufficient demand to place the $750 million bond locally, or that institutional investors had reached their regulatory limits on the amount of foreign currency debt they can hold.

He revealed that Bahamian insurance companies had not received their full allocation from the Government’s domestic bond issue last month because it

was oversubscribed, suggesting there was significant interest in its debt locally.

And Mr Smith also refuted the Minnis administration’s glee at obtaining a better-than-expected 6 per cent interest coupon for the $750 million bond, recalling that when in office he obtained a spread over 10-year US Treasury bonds that was 50 per cent less.

“I see their rationale for stretching out some shortterm bonds so the debt payments will probably be less over a longer period

of time,” Mr Smith told Tribune Business of the Government’s strategy.

“But I still have reservations about taking out Bahamian dollar loans with US currency. I don’t agree with it at all, unless there’s something I’m missing here.

We have over $1 billion in excess liquidity and, by taking out Bahamian dollar loans and Treasury Bills, which are part of the money supply, you’re only increasing your liquidity.”

Tracking the knock-on effects, he added: “To get the economy going again you need access to credit, and banks are not putting out credit the way they used to because of the non-performing loans.

“Yet you have excess liquidity that has pushed deposit interest rates down, so banks are not paying anything to savers. By adding $300 million to the money supply, all you’re doing is increasing liquidity, and the length of time before before savers get positive interest rates has been extended. How long do you expect them to get nothing? You’re penalising savers.

“I’m more concerned that it may have the impact of slowing down growth locally,” Mr Smith continued. “The banks are not lending the way they used to, so they’re trying to make up the difference by fees and commissions rather than interest.

“They’ve pushed deposit rates almost to zero because they’ve got so much liquidity, and now you’re adding more to that. If there was some way of mopping that up, the consumer would benefit directly.

“Interest rates on deposits will be in positive territory, and because the banks get an additional revenue stream from the bonds bought from the Government, they will not need to add on all these fees. Five dollars to cash a cheque?

They’re nickel and diming us, and now you’re putting them in a position where they have more liquidity.”

K P Turnquest, deputy prime minister and minister of finance, told Tribune Business that the Government would ‘mop up’ excess commercial banking liquidity by placing the $570 million ‘balance’ of its

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AND IN THE MATTER OF Property comprised in a Mortgage dated the 15th day of November A.D. 2006 between Bonnie Elizabeth Adams and Bank of The Bahamas Limited and recorded in Book 010666 at pages 331 to 342 in the Registry of Records in the City of Nassau in the Island of New Providence, AND IN THE MATTER of a Mortgage Action pursuant to Order 77 of the Rules of the Supreme Court 1978.

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However, Mr Smith told Tribune Business he was sceptical of the Government’s decision to first access the international capital markets for $750 million in foreign currency financing.

“I don’t buy that,” he said, “because the insurance companies have participated just last month in the Government’s bond issue and couldn’t get all their allocation because it was oversubscribed.

“I’m not totally convinced there was no local demand for it, as the insurance companies need long-term bonds to match their asset/liability mix and I know they were not able to get their allocation last month.”

Mr Smith was just as sceptical over concerns that institutional investors, such as banks and insurance companies, had reached their regulatory limits in terms of government debt holdings. “If there was a limit they’d speak to their head offices and say: ‘It’s your choice between a zero interest rate and 5-6 per cent bond’,” he argued.

Suggesting that the Government’s advisers, Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) and Deutsche Bank, may have pushed it to go the international route, Mr Smith said the 6 per cent rate obtained for the $750 million bond was nothing to boast about.

That represents a 362.1 basis point spread above the yield on 10-year US Treasury bonds, but Mr Smith recalled when the Bahamas was able to obtain a spread of just 175 basis points during his term in office.

Much has changed since then, with Standard & Poor’s (S&P) downgrading the Bahamas’ creditworthiness to ‘junk’ status, but Mr Smith argued: “They’re saying 6 per cent is good.

That’s not good at all. It just sounds good to people in Nassau getting 0 per cent.”

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, November 16, 2017, PAGE 5

Christie Gov’t breached ‘Budgetary allowance’ FROM PAGE 1

been forced into this week’s US$750 million bond issue by the unfunded spending commitments left behind by its predecessor, which were “outside its Budgetary allowances to make�.

Mr Turnquest hit out after Chester Cooper, the Opposition’s finance spokesman, issued a statement suggesting that the $2.8 billion in ‘investor indications’ received by the bond offering - almost four times’ the principal sum being sought - showed that “the cupboard was never bare� as the current administration has claimed. “Given that we, the current administration, met a Treasury that was wholly cash-strapped with government agencies holding hundreds of millions of dollars in arrears owed to Bahamian individuals and businesses, and foreign businesses, I don’t know how much ‘barer’ the members opposite could have left the proverbial cupboard,� Mr Turnquest blasted. “The reason we are borrowing at the current level is we have had to take on the unfunded obligations left by his PLP administration. He’s [Mr Cooper] unsuccessfully trying to distance himself and the PLP from that debt that necessitated the level of borrowing this administration has had

to take on. You cannot walk away from that, Exuma and Ragged Island, and you cannot place that on our administration.�

In his June Budget address, Mr Turnquest said the Government was being forced into ‘emergency borrowing’ of $400 million to meet a $70 million ‘hedging’ call, plus unpaid and unfunded bills left by the former administration.

He added at the time that the Treasury faced a $161.284 million payments backlog, representing transactions that required funding, plus another $130.781 million in unfunded commitments representing promises to pay vendors once the goods or services have been delivered. “Those are commitments, unfunded, that we had to go out and find funding for immediately upon coming to office,� the Deputy Prime Minister reiterated yesterday. “The bond issue seeks to term out and repay that, so that we can better manage our cash flow.�

Arguing that investor response to the $750 million bond showed confidence in the Minnis administration’s “words and deeds�, especially its fiscal consolidation and growth strategies, Mr Turnquest said he and his Ministry of Finance team had been able to answer “the hard questions� asked about government economic policies. “We had to defend, believe it or not, that [former] administration

on the road,� Mr Turnquest revealed. “We had to defend them because we were on the road, and as a nationalist I won’t allow anyone to speak ill of the Government of the Bahamas.�

The Deputy Prime Minister also responded to Mr Cooper’s assertion that the Minnis administration was using “partial or selective acceptance� of accrualbased accounting methods to inflate the $695 million deficit it says the prior government left behind in 2016-2017.

Pointing to the Prime Minister’s confirmation that accrual-based accounting will be rolled-out across the Government by 2022, Mr Cooper alleged that the new administration has been engaging in “accounting tricks�.

Brushing this aside, Mr Turnquest responded: “This is not about accounting treatments. The former administration made hundreds of millions of dollars of spending commitments that were outstanding. “The facts are that the former administration left hundreds of millions of dollars in unfunded spending commitments that were outside its Budgetary allowances to make. Those are facts.�

The Government’s annual Budget, including its total spending (both recurrent and capital), have to be approved every year by Parliament before the new fiscal year begins on July 1. Mr Turnquest’s

comments imply that the Christie administration went beyond its approved spending limits, an action for which it should have obtained prior Parliamentary approval.

The Deputy Prime Minister, meanwhile, went to great lengths yesterday to emphasise that the $750 million bond’s proceeds would not increase the national debt beyond the $722 million in borrowing projected for the 2017-2018 fiscal year.

He explained that the bond is only refinancing, and replacing, short-term borrowings and securities that were already obtained

to finance this borrowing meaning it will not add to the $722 million figure. “The increment to the outstanding debt was, and remains, $722.3 million,�

Mr Turnquest said, with this figure being the projected increase to the Bahamas’ $7 billion-plus national debt.

Breaking down the Government’s borrowing/ financing plans, the Deputy Prime Minister said $400 million was needed to cover the 2016-2017 fiscal year’s arrears, with a further $322.3 million needed to cover the projected 20172018 deficit.

Another $600.2 million is required for refinancing/

debt repayment but, again, this will not add to the Government’s deficit or national debt as it is merely “rolling over existing debt�.

Mr Turnquest said this sum would have “a neutral impact on debt levels�.

Responding to claims that the $750 million bond issue lacked transparency, and was fiscally “imprudent�, the Deputy Prime Minister said: “Nothing could be further from the truth. “There is absolutely nothing devious, surreptitious or imprudent about this transaction, or the way in which it was handled,� he added.

Bank of the Bahamas reveals 30 lay-offs FROM PAGE 1 decisions are based on careful assessment of our operations and the corporate objective of securing enhanced efficiencies. We wish to emphasise that all decisions were taken with the greatest level of diligence, care and sensitivity.�

Many observers have long called for BOB to cut costs by reducing its

TO ADVERTISE TODAY IN THE TRIBUNE CALL @ 502-2394

staff and branch numbers, especially following a near five-year trend of consistent, heavy losses that virtually wiped out shareholder value and resulted in three taxpayer (Government) funded bail-outs costing over $300 million.

The downsizing confirmation comes in a week when the BISX-listed institution revealed it has generated its first quarterly profit since end-December

2012, with $838,261 in total comprehensive income for the three months to endSeptember 2017.

A 63.7 per cent yearover-year reduction in loan loss provisions, from $4.387 million to $1.59 million, was largely responsible for BOB’s first quarter performance, which indicated that the latest $162 million ‘bailout’ and toxic loan transfer to Bahamas Resolve may already be paying off.Â

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PAGE 8, Thursday, November 16, 2017

GROWTH BOOST

FROM PAGE 1

found. “In this case, credit market entry costs are high - but leverage is kept at low rates, so funding is relatively cheap for those that can access it.”

Collateral requirements were identified as one of three major obstacles to SMEs accessing credit, with interest rates and fees and ‘participation costs’

the other two. The latter reflects the amount of bureaucracy and ‘red tape’ that businesses encounter, including account opening requirements and Know Your Customer (KYC) due diligence, plus the need for guarantors.

The IMF book assessed what would happen if banks and other lenders reduced their collateral requirements to the world minimum of 50 per cent of loan value, and eliminated interest rate spreads and socalled ‘participation costs’.

THE TRIBUNE Acknowledging that the final two objectives were ‘ideals’ unlikely to happen in practice, the book said the benefits would positively impact GDP growth over several years. “These policy changes are significant and would take time to phase in,” it conceded.

Still, reducing collateral requirements for Bahamian SMEs to the world minimum 50 per cent would boost this nation’s GDP growth by a total 14-15 per cent over several years, the IMF researchers found.

Eliminating ‘participation costs’ would have a near-6 per cent GDP impact for the Bahamas, while narrowing interest rate spreads to zero would have an more modest 2 per cent effect.

“The largest GDP gains accrue from lowering collateral requirements,” the IMF book said.

“The model predicts that total cumulative expansion of the Caribbean countries’ GDP could range between 10 and 20 per cent if all collateral requirements were lowered to 50 per cent, which is the lowest level of collateral across countries in the World Enterprise Surveys.”

Access to credit is a frequent complaint among Bahamian businesses, especially among small start-ups and entrepreneurs who have minimal assets to pledge as collateral and no credit history.

Lincoln Deal II, the JetLink Adventures founder and chief executive, told the Bahamas Institute of Chartered Accountants (BICA) conference earlier this week that he was rejected by 17 potential financiers - including two commercial banks - before

finally obtaining funding from the Government-sponsored venture capital fund.

The inability to obtain capital, on the timeline and scale required, is frequently cited as a major factor that inhibits economic growth in the Bahamas. However, the study showed that just 15 per cent of Bahamian SMEs identified access to capital as a major constraint - the smallest percentage in the Caribbean.

The IMF book concluded that ‘financial development’ in this nation “could be improved”, finding: “The financial development levels of the Bahamas, Barbados, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago remain in the mid range of Latin America and the Caribbean.

“There is scope for further financial development, but care should be taken to safeguard financial stability. Policies that may be pertinent for these countries include strengthening institutional and legal frameworks related to property rights and collateral registries, as well as improving the credibility of financial systems and deposit insurance, enhancing capital and liquidity

buffers, and addressing balance sheet mismatches.”

The IMF book said the Bahamas’ has “relatively high levels of financial development”, and was among the top four in Latin America and the Caribbean for ‘market depth’ given the level of debt issuances by banks and corporate entities. It also exceeds the regional average on physical access to finance.

“As for financial institutions, the Bahamas surpasses the Latin America and Caribbean average in both access and efficiency, thanks to strong performance in the number of automated teller machines (ATMs) and bank branches per capita, and high levels of credit to GDP,” the study added. “[But] the strong performance of Jamaica and the Bahamas is likely linked to proliferation of banking access points in tourism areas, illustrating a potential weakness with the measurement of physical access: ATMs and branches could be highly concentrated in some areas, leading to high measured access that does not necessarily reach everyone in the population.”

The Winterbotham Trust Company Limited

Winterbotham Place – P.O. Box N-3026 – Marlborough & Queen Streets

Nassau – The Bahamas Tel: (1-242) 356-5454 – Fax: (1-242) 356-9432 E-mail: nassau@winterbotham.com – Website: www.winterbotham.com

JOB OPPORTUNITY The Winterbotham Trust Company Limited is looking to fill the position of Junior Accountant FOR A SIX-MONTH CONTRACT Main Function: To provide accounting services to several clients, including assistance with the preparation of financial statements under IFRS. In this position you will be responsible for but not limited to the following tasks: • To gather all information needed to start bookkeeping. To this extent, liaison with Corporate Administrators and filing staff is required.

• Bookkeeping.

• Preparation of bank account reconciliations.

• Preparation of special accounting reports.

• Assistance with the building and formatting of Financial Statements for trusts, companies and foundations and onward delivery to AVP for review.

• To provide audit support to certain clients. To validate balances on external audit confirmations.

The successful applicant must have the following qualifications: • Associates Degree (or equivalent) with emphasis in Accounting.

• 1 year of experience in a similar position.

• Knowledge of Accounting standards (IFRS), Office (Excel, Word) • Strong organization and communication skills • Team work-focused, ability to achieve several objectives in parallel.

• Consistency in meeting reporting deadlines.

Applications/resume should be sent by e-mail to jobs@winterbotham.com Under reference “Junior Accountant” ABSOLUTELY NO TELEPHONE INQUIRIES WILL BE ACCEPTED Persons not meeting the above requirements need not apply Deadline for applications Tuesday, November 21, 2017

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, November 16, 2017, PAGE 9

$750m bond ‘makes compelling case’ for S&P ‘junk’ upgrade FROM PAGE 1 combined with its the 28 per cent upward revision that took real Bahamian gross domestic product (GDP) to $10.22 billion in 2016, will be enough to sway S&P. The ‘junk’ downgrade’s impact was felt by the $750 million bond, as the 6 per cent interest rate (price) was some 250 basis points higher than that obtained by the former Christie administration in 2014 - the last time the Government went to the global markets.

The Bahamas obtained a 3.5 per cent interest coupon then because it still had an ‘investment grade’ credit rating, the difference highlighting the damage ‘junk’ status causes through increasing a nation’s debt servicing costs.

Mr Turnquest, meanwhile, told Tribune Business that the $2.8 billion in ‘investor indications’ had generated sufficient demand to push the latest bond’s interest rate down from the originally-forecast 6.25-6.5 per cent.

Acknowledging concerns over the Government’s decision to take on extra foreign currency borrowings, as opposed to seeking funding from the Bahamian capital markets, the Deputy Prime Minister said it had acted based on strategic advice from the Central Bank and other local institutions.

He added that the Minnis administration requires a further $570 million to complete its $1.323 billion funding “envelope”, all of which it intended to place with Bahamian investors.

But, with the $750 million bond’s placement set to take foreign currency debt,

as a percentage of the total, from 28 per cent to 30 per cent, Mr Turnquest conceded that “we don’t want to go much higher than that”.

“I think this is just further confirmation that we seem to be on the right path,” Mr Turnquest said of investor response to the $750 million bond. “Both Moody’s and the IMF have made the same general comment that our plan was a reasonable way forward.

“I can tell you that on the roadshow the investor response was overwhelmingly positive. Persons were very interested in learning the policy position of the new government and, to the extent we were able to get interest of $2.8 billion, it is a testament to the fact that the fundamentals of the Bahamas are strong; that the fiscal and growth plan put forward is stable, resulting in more expressions of investor confidence, and we have continued headroom should the need for additional financing arise.”

Mr Turnquest said “some savings” should result from the $750 million bond’s placement with a 6 per cent interest rate. He revealed that the Government’s advisers had initially predicted a coupon of 6.25-6.5 per cent would be required to adequately compensate investors for the risk.

Addressing concerns over why the Government did not turn to the local capital markets first for its financing needs, Mr Turnquest pledged that the ‘balance’ of its $1.323 billion “envelope” would be placed in the Bahamas.

“We’re very sensitive to the liquidity situation,” he said, “and speak to the Central Bank and other investors to make the best possible strategic

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NOTICE

Martim Vaz Hills Limited In Voluntary Liquidation

Notice is hereby given that in accordance with Section 138(4) of the International Business Companies Act. 2000, Martim Vaz Hills Limited is in dissolution as of November 13th, 2017.

International Liquidator Services Inc. situated at 3rd Floor Withfield Tower, 4792 Coney Drive, Belize City, Belize is the Liquidator.

LIQUIDATOR ______________________

decision, both for the Government and local investor community.

“We’re still going to have $570 million of financing that needs to be done, in addition to one-off items for various agencies. We believe we’ll be able to absorb quite a bit of that liquidity in the not too distant future. I don’t think it will be an issue once we get around to our operations.

It is our view to place all of that locally.”

Observers such as former finance minister, James Smith, have expressed

concerns that the decision to pay-out $300 million in short-term Bahamian dollar loans and Treasury Bills with the bond’s US dollars will increase the Bahamas’ foreign currency debt to unwanted levels.

Mr Turnquest conceded that while the Government was “comfortable” with the bond’s impact on the Bahamas’ foreign debt holdings, it was continually monitoring its ratio to the total debt.

“It was about 28 per cent,” he told Tribune Business of the foreign currency

debt ratio, “and with this transaction it takes it to, at most, 30 per cent.

“We are constantly monitoring this thing. This is

about where we want to be.

We certainly don’t want to go much more than that, so we’re comfortable at this level.”

PAGE 10, Thursday, November 16, 2017

THE TRIBUNE

PUBLIC NOTICE

MARKET REPORT WEDNESDAY, 15 NOVEMBER 2017

INTENT TO CHANGE NAME BY DEED POLL t. 242.323.2330 | f. 242.323.2320 | www.bisxbahamas.com

BISX ALL SHARE INDEX: CLOSE 2,066.83 | CHG 0.01 | %CHG 0.00 | YTD 128.62 | YTD% 6.64 BISX LISTED & TRADED SECURITIES 52WK HI 4.38 19.17 9.09 3.70 1.96 0.16 5.60 8.60 6.30 5.30 13.50 2.59 1.60 6.01 10.06 11.00 4.50 7.25 12.51 11.00

52WK LOW 4.06 17.43 8.19 3.50 1.22 0.12 3.50 8.40 5.83 3.15 9.00 2.18 1.40 5.82 8.78 5.75 3.35 6.61 12.01 10.00

1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00

1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00

PREFERENCE SHARES

1.00 103.00 100.00 106.00 105.00 103.00 100.00 10.00 1.01

1.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 105.00 100.00 100.00 10.00 1.00

SECURITY AML Foods Limited APD Limited Bahamas Property Fund Bahamas Waste Bank of Bahamas Benchmark Cable Bahamas CIBC FirstCaribbean Bank Colina Holdings Commonwealth Bank Commonwealth Brewery Consolidated Water BDRs Doctor's Hospital Famguard Fidelity Bank Finco Focol ICD Utilities J. S. Johnson Premier Real Estate Cable Bahamas Series 6 Cable Bahamas Series 8 Cable Bahamas Series 9 Cable Bahamas Series 10 Colina Holdings Class A Commonwealth Bank Class E Commonwealth Bank Class J Commonwealth Bank Class K Commonwealth Bank Class L Commonwealth Bank Class M Commonwealth Bank Class N Fidelity Bank Class A Focol Class B

CORPORATE DEBT - (percentage pricing) 52WK HI 100.00 100.00 100.00

52WK LOW 100.00 100.00 100.00

SYMBOL AML APD BPF BWL BOB BBL CAB CIB CHL CBL CBB CWCB DHS FAM FBB FIN FCL ICD JSJ PRE CAB6 CAB8 CAB9 CAB10 CHLA CBLE CBLJ CBLK CBLL CBLM CBLN FBBA FCLB

SECURITY Fidelity Bank Note 17 (Series A) + Fidelity Bank Note 18 (Series E) + Fidelity Bank Note 22 (Series B) +

SYMBOL FBB17 FBB18 FBB22

Bahamas Note 6.95 (2029) BGS: 2014-12-3Y BGS: 2015-1-3Y BGS: 2014-12-5Y BGS: 2015-1-5Y BGS: 2014-12-7Y BGS: 2015-1-7Y BGS: 2014-12-30Y BGS: 2015-1-30Y BGS: 2015-6-3Y BGS: 2015-6-5Y BGS: 2015-6-7Y BGS: 2015-6-30Y BGS: 2015-10-3Y BGS: 2015-10-5Y BGS: 2015-10-7Y

BAH29 BG0103 BG0203 BG0105 BG0205 BG0107 BG0207 BG0130 BG0230 BG0303 BG0305 BG0307 BG0330 BG0403 BG0405 BG0407

BAHAMAS GOVERNMENT STOCK - (percentage pricing) 115.92 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00

104.79 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00

MUTUAL FUNDS 52WK HI 2.10 3.98 1.97 176.30 149.66 1.52 1.69 1.61 1.10 6.99 8.54 6.15 10.52 11.46 10.46

52WK LOW 1.67 3.04 1.68 164.74 116.70 1.46 1.62 1.56 1.04 6.41 7.62 5.66 8.65 10.54 9.57

LAST CLOSE 4.31 17.43 9.09 3.70 1.25 0.15 3.70 8.60 6.10 4.94 9.02 2.39 1.51 6.01 10.06 6.30 4.49 7.01 12.50 10.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1.00 100.00 100.00 100.40 100.00 100.00 100.00 10.00 1.00 LAST SALE 100.00 100.00 100.00 108.27 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00

CLOSE 4.31 17.43 9.09 3.70 1.25 0.15 3.70 8.60 6.10 4.94 9.02 2.40 1.51 6.01 10.06 6.30 4.49 7.01 12.50 10.00

CHANGE 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.01 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1.00 100.00 100.00 100.40 100.00 100.00 100.00 10.00 1.00

0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

CLOSE 100.00 100.00 100.00

CHANGE 0.00 0.00 0.00

107.89 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00

-0.38 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

FUND CFAL Bond Fund CFAL Balanced Fund CFAL Money Market Fund CFAL Global Bond Fund CFAL Global Equity Fund FG Financial Preferred Income Fund FG Financial Growth Fund FG Financial Diversified Fund FG Financial Global USD Bond Fund Royal Fidelity Bahamas Opportunities Fund - Secured Balanced Fund Royal Fidelity Bahamas Opportunities Fund - Targeted Equity Fund Royal Fidelity Bahamas Opportunities Fund - Prime Income Fund Royal Fidelity Int'l Fund - Equities Sub Fund Royal Fidelity Int'l Fund - High Yield Fund Royal Fidelity Int'l Fund - Alternative Strategies Fund

VOLUME 2,644

491 560

VOLUME

NAV 2.10 3.98 1.97 176.30 149.66 1.52 1.69 1.61 1.09 6.97 8.00 6.25 10.96 11.60 10.08

EPS$ 0.444 0.932 -0.223 0.540 -1.373 0.000 -0.857 0.611 0.574 0.196 0.582 0.102 0.392 1.217 0.743 0.575 0.310 -0.668 0.543 0.000

DIV$ 0.080 1.000 0.000 0.210 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.300 0.220 0.120 0.570 0.060 0.050 0.290 0.450 0.000 0.120 0.140 0.600 0.000

0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000

0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000

P/E 9.7 18.7 N/M 6.9 N/M N/M -4.3 14.1 10.6 25.2 15.5 23.5 3.9 4.9 13.5 11.0 14.5 -10.5 23.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 6.25% 6.25% 6.25% 6.25% 6.25% 6.25% 6.25% 7.00% 6.50%

INTEREST 7.00% 6.00% Prime + 1.75%

MATURITY 19-Oct-2017 31-May-2018 19-Oct-2022

6.95% 4.00% 4.00% 4.25% 4.25% 4.50% 4.50% 6.25% 6.25% 4.00% 4.25% 4.50% 6.25% 3.50% 3.88% 4.25%

20-Nov-2029 15-Dec-2017 30-Jul-2018 16-Dec-2019 30-Jul-2020 15-Dec-2021 30-Jul-2022 15-Dec-2044 30-Jul-2045 26-Jun-2018 26-Jun-2020 26-Jun-2022 26-Jun-2045 15-Oct-2018 15-Oct-2020 15-Oct-2022

YTD% 12 MTH% 3.29% 4.48% 1.69% 2.22% 1.77% 2.42% 4.66% 3.89% 5.58% 6.65% 3.57% 4.29% 1.59% 2.22% 2.65% 3.25% 3.83% -1.09% -1.08% 1.77% -5.96% -3.05% 1.90% 4.59% 7.24% 11.96% 2.77% 3.88% 3.94% 4.69%

NAV Date 30-Sep-2017 30-Sep-2017 30-Sep-2017 30-Sep-2017 30-Sep-2017 31-Oct-2017 31-Oct-2017 31-Oct-2017 31-Oct-2017 30-Sep-2017 30-Sep-2017 30-Sep-2017 30-Sep-2017 30-Sep-2017 30-Sep-2017

MARKET TERMS BISX ALL SHARE INDEX - 19 Dec 02 = 1,000.00 52wk-Hi - Highest closing price in last 52 weeks 52wk-Low - Lowest closing price in last 52 weeks Previous Close - Previous day's weighted price for daily volume Today's Close - Current day's weighted price for daily volume Change - Change in closing price from day to day Daily Vol. - Number of total shares traded today DIV $ - Dividends per share paid in the last 12 months P/E - Closing price divided by the last 12 month earnings

YIELD 1.86% 5.74% 0.00% 5.68% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 3.49% 3.61% 2.43% 6.32% 2.50% 3.31% 4.83% 4.47% 0.00% 2.67% 2.00% 4.80% 0.00%

YIELD - last 12 month dividends divided by closing price Bid $ - Buying price of Colina and Fidelity Ask $ - Selling price of Colina and fidelity Last Price - Last traded over-the-counter price Weekly Vol. - Trading volume of the prior week EPS $ - A company's reported earnings per share for the last 12 mths NAV - Net Asset Value N/M - Not Meaningful

TO TRADE CALL: CFAL 242-502-7010 | ROYALFIDELITY 242-356-7764 | FG CAPITAL MARKETS 242-396-4000 | COLONIAL 242-502-7525 | LENO 242-396-3225

The public is hereby advised that I, CORDELLO PANE MOSS of #14 Joe Farrington Rd., New Providence, Bahamas, intend to change my name to CARDELLO PAUL MAJOR. If there are any objections to this change of name

by Deed Poll, you may write such objections to the Chief Passport Officer, P.O. Box N-742, Nassau, Bahamas no later than thirty (30) days after the date of the publication of this notice.

NOTICE

NOTICE is hereby given that JOCELYNE JOSEPH of Farrington Road, P.O. Box SB-51206, New Providence, Bahamas, is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for registration/naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 16th day of November, 2017 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.

NOTICE

NOTICE is hereby given that JOHN LOUIS of Davis St., Fox Hill, New Providence, Bahamas, is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for registration/ naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 16th day of November, 2017 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, November 16, 2017, PAGE 11

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PAGE 12, Thursday, November 16, 2017

THE TRIBUNE

BUILDING FOR BETTER

MEET THE PERSON RESPONSIBLE FOR BPL’s RESTRUCTURING AND WAY FORWARD Bahamas Power and Light Company Ltd. (BPL) is pleased to introduce Mr. Whitney V. Heastie as Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Heastie has been given the challenging task of rebuilding, rebranding and making the hard but necessary decisions for BPL’s renewal and success. His overall vision is to put BPL back on a track that assures its consumers, employees and the general public that the Board of BPL is working in their best interest. Mr. Heastie is building a team with the objective to modify policies, best practices and job positions so that they reflect the changes within the company’s current structure.

Mr. Heastie has the full confidence of BPL’s Board based on his multi-disciplinary engineering career with over thirty-five years of practical and executive experience across various industries, including the petroleum, petrochemical, pharmaceutical, and electric power industries.

Mrs. Darnell Osborne, Chairperson of BPL’s Board of Directors, said, “Mr. Heastie’s appointment comes at an opportune time in the company’s development and restructuring. The Board recognizes that there are talented Bahamians who have the capacity to lead BPL administratively and technically on its new path of innovation and growth.”

In his acceptance statement Mr. Heastie said, “I am thankful to the Board of Directors for this appointment and look forward to serving the people of The Bahamas in this important role. I am excited to work with BPL’s team in providing quality service to our customers who expect and deserve more for their money. Our goal is to provide world-class, reliable energy service in an environmentally friendly way at the lowest cost to our consumers and ensuring they’re satisfied with the services we provide.”

A native of Nassau, Mr. Heastie was previously employed with Grand Bahama Power Company in Freeport where he served in a number of capacities including Vice-President of Generation & Engineering and Vice President of Operations. During his six plus years there he was instrumental in reducing the frequency and duration of power outages and increasing the Company’s availability statistics for the generating plant. As a result of his efforts, the Company enjoyed successes and improvements in its operations and notable cost savings.

Whitney V. Heastie Chief Executive Officer

Mr. Heastie spent over 20 years in the U.S.A. during his early career serving as Director of Process and Environmental Engineering for Jacobs Engineering Group, the third largest engineering firm in the world. Mr. Heastie was instrumental in ensuring that projects under his control satisfied all Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) standards of compliance.

As a representative of Jacobs, he served as a Process Manager for ExxonMobil, taking responsibility for multi-million dollar projects. Mr. Heastie also served as Lead Process Engineer for a major refinery ($5 billion) expansion. While at Jacobs he also served as Process Engineer for other clients such as: British Petroleum and Chevron, gaining additional experience in refinery upgrade and realignment projects.

Mr. Heastie also spent over two years as Senior Manager of Operations, Engineering, Maintenance and Construction, for Pharmachem Technologies, Inc. located in Grand Bahama. During his tenure, he was responsible for the oversight of all production, utilities, environmental projects, maintenance, engineering and construction and their respective capital and expense budgets.

Mr. Heastie holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Chemical Engineering and a Bachelor of Science Degree in Environmental Engineering, both from Florida Institute of Technology