Corporate Profile

Solid History

For decades, Republic Bank has held a resolute focus on its Vision of being a bank that is chosen as the Caribbean Financial Institution of Choice for its Staff, Customers and Shareholders. It aims to do so by setting the Standard of Excellence in Customer Satisfaction; Employee Engagement; Social Responsibility and Shareholder Value – while building successful societies.

Over 17 decades old, the organisation is a visionary one, with a history of continual financial growth, professional and personal development, and successful collaboration with communities to bring about positive change. Since it first opened its doors in 1937 as the Colonial Bank, the first commercial bank in Trinidad; to its 1925 amalgamation with the National Bank of South Africa Limited and the Anglo-Egyptian Bank to become Dominion, Colonial and Overseas (D.C.O.); until its eventual renaming to Barclays Bank of Trinidad and Tobago and then to what is today, Republic Bank Limited, the Bank has successfully weathered many changes to remain one of the largest and most successful indigenous financial institutions in the Caribbean. It offers a diverse portfolio of products and services designed to satisfy the growing needs of its retail banking customers, corporate clients and governments throughout the Region.

The Bank continuously subscribes to its Core Values of Customer Focus; Integrity; Respect for The Individual and Results Orientation. Holding integrity at the core of all its relationships, the Bank generates trust and confidence from its customers, suppliers, shareholders and the general public. Republic Bank also consistently demonstrates honesty, fairness and openness in all operations, and its business processes and practices support service excellence while protecting the interest of its customers, employees and shareholders.

Expansion Philosophy

The Republic Bank Group subscribes to a philosophy of expansion through organic growth and acquisition. It consistently creates significant value to strategic investment partners, driven by a philosophy of maintaining strong local participation in all overseas investments. Though Caribbean based, the Bank is a global player that adds value to the markets it enters through a developmental approach that ensures strong local input, strong local knowledge and strong local influence in decision making. Its success is driven by human resource development, a local focus to its service approach and the emphasis placed on corporate social responsibility. Its current expansion interests are within the Caribbean and Sub-Saharan Africa.

Banking Partner

An organisation that believes in working side by side with its customers, the Bank brings with it, 178 years of retail and commercial banking activity; more than 30 years of merchant banking experience; almost 20 years in special project funding; over 150 years in corporate banking and approximately eight years providing investment and brokerage services. As at September 30, 2014, the assets of Republic Bank Limited stood at US$9.4 billion, with equity at US$1.4 billion and profits attributable to shareholders for the year ended September 30, 2014, of US$192.0 million. With regard to its Credit Card Portfolio, the Bank leads the market in Trinidad & Tobago in areas of card issuance, with more than 35% market share in a five-player market, and well over 50% market share in merchant Point of Sale services. It has been first to market in most instances with the credit card products that are in demand by consumers, offering a full range of credit cards, including its Signature, Platinum and Business cards, along with rewards programmes that provide travel miles and reward points.

Republic holds solid, long-term relationships with its customers on the retail, commercial and corporate levels. Seeking to enhance the economic drivers in the economies within which it operates, the Bank spans the SME sector, from micro to medium-sized enterprises, manufacturing, construction, tourism, retail and of course, oil and gas. Despite an economic downturn in the Caribbean, excess liquidity and intense competition, Republic maintains its leader position in market share for loans, deposits and mortgages in 3 out of 4 markets. It is committed to remaining au courant with trends in the markets it serves, in an effort to not only supply what its customers require, but to provide guidance toward ensuring sound investments.

Shareholder Value

Shareholder Value is best expressed in performance and when looking at the impact on the performance of the Bank’s subsidiaries after acquisition, the numbers tell their own story:

Impact on Assets after acquisition:

• In Barbados, total assets grew from US$754M in 2003 to US$1,104.7M in 2014 – A Compound Annual Growth rate of 3.5%.
• In Guyana, total assets grew from US$129M in 1997 to US$617.2M in 2014 – A Compound Annual Growth rate of 9.6%.
• In Grenada, total assets grew from US$49M in 1992 to US$302.7M in 2014 – A Compound Annual Growth rate of 8.6%.

Impact on Equity after acquisition:

• In Barbados, total equity grew from US$86M in 2003 to US$184.1M in 2014 – A Compound Annual Growth rate of 7.2%.
• In Guyana, total equity grew from US$10M in 1997 to US$64.9M in 2014 – A Compound Annual Growth rate of 11.6%.
• In Grenada, total equity grew from US$5M in 1992 to US$34.3M in 2014 – A Compound Annual Growth rate of 9.1%.

People Focus

Today, the Republic Bank Group operates 70 branches throughout the Region, with an approximate staff complement of over 4,100 people. Training across the Group plays a big part in the Bank’s Employee Engagement efforts. In the last five years, more than US$35 million has been invested in the development of Republic Bank staff across all markets within which the Bank operates. Training is provided using the following methods:

• External (including Overseas)
• In-house
• Computer Based – accessible individually at resources desktop
• On the Job
• Leadership, inclusive of Executive Development training at Harvard University, Boston

Much of the Bank’s business is based in developing markets; subscribing to the belief that human capital drives economic achievement, Republic makes every effort to ensure that its staff are tooled and retooled to meet the challenges of their jobs and to knowledgeably service the needs of a discerning and increasingly financially savvy customer base. Republic is well aware that customers have a choice and as such, through a commitment to continuous training and investment in human capital across the organisation, the Bank ensures that its customers’ needs are met.

Building Successful Societies

In addition to being a strong financial institution and an equal opportunity employer, the Bank is a socially responsible one. Grounded by a strong belief that every human life has an invaluable contribution to make to his or her environment, and that as a strong, stable and responsible financial group and as individuals belonging to this group, it must work toward improving the quality of life of those around it, Republic Bank introduced its flagship social investment programme, the Power to Make a Difference, in Trinidad, in 2003. Over time, this overarching social investment programme has been implemented in each territory that the Bank has entered. The Bank believes that it is its brothers’ keeper and in so doing, must contribute its time, energy, intellect and financial resources to improving conditions in every market in which it operates. Through the Programme, the Bank champions the cause of the young, elderly and socially marginalised, all the while promoting and safeguarding the rights of the differently–able, under four very simple but powerful pillars: the Power to Care, the Power to Learn, the Power to Help and the Power to Succeed. For the period 2013-2017, the Bank has committed US$15.4 million.