IN KEEPING with its expansion strategy and its focus on areas outside its traditional Caribbean markets, Republic Bank Limited has confirmed its recent purchase of an 8.9 per cent stake in HFC Bank in Ghana.
Commenting on the purchase, Republic Bank’s managing director David Dulal-Whiteway said that the bank had been considering a number of overseas interests over the last few years and decided on the HFC opportunity, following that bank’s recent private placement to raise 50 million Ghana cedis. Republic Bank’s investment in HFC’s shares is put at US$8 million.
According to Dulal-Whiteway, the investment in HFC will open up new opportunities for Republic Bank’s local business clients to do business on the African continent.
“Africa, and in particular Ghana, has been a key growth area for international business, and several of our Trinidad and Tobago corporate clients have been actively exploring those markets.
“Conversely, Republic Bank’s strong knowledge of oil- and gas-financing business here in the Caribbean would prove beneficial to the African bank,” said Dulal-Whiteway.
HFC Bank was licensed as a commercial bank in 2003, with core services in mortgages, consumer loans, commercial and investment banking.
The bank has an asset base of US$264 million and a return on assets of 2.5 per cent based on its last published financials. The bank is considered a leader in Ghana’s mortgages market and operates 27 branches in that country.
Republic Bank recently declared profits of US$182.5 million for its 2012 financial year and boasts assets in excess of US$8.1 billion. (PR)
