RBC regional exec: Bank is committed to The Bahamas long term

RBC regional exec: Bank is committed to The Bahamas long term
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NASSAU, BAHAMAS – Royal Bank of Canada’s top regional executive yesterday said the bank ‘absolutely’ remains committed to this jurisdiction.

Rob Johnston, RBC’s head of Caribbean banking, said: “We’re committed to The Bahamas’s future. It continues to be a robust economy.

“There is a lot of wealth being created here and we have a responsibility to provide advice and solutions to Bahamian businesses, the government and people who are choosing to move here. It’s still a very attractive destination.”

Back in December, RBC announced it had entered into agreements to sell all of its banking operations in the Eastern Caribbean to local banks on the representative islands.

The bank announced that it was exiting Antigua and Barbuda; Dominica; Grenada; Montserrat; St. Kitts and Nevis; St. Lucia; and St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

The news came on the heels of an announcement by rival Canadian bank CIBC which said it had sold a majority stake in its Caribbean arm, CIBC FirstCaribbean International Bank Limited, to GNB Financial Group Limited.

RBC maintains a presence in The Bahamas, as well as Trinidad & Tobago, Barbados, the Cayman Islands and Turks & Caicos.

Scores of Royal Bank employees from around the world have arrived in Nassau to take part in the bank’s Race for the Kinds series slated for this weekend.

A fun-run to support RBC Race for the Kids was held yesterday ending at the British Colonial Hilton.

The Bahamas Technical and Vocational Institute was presented with a cheque for $21,500.