Measures have been implemented to ensure Jamaican investors with shares in CIBC FirstCaribbean International Bank (FCIB) are not disadvantaged now that they can only trade them in Barbados.
Barbados Stock Exchange (BSE) chief executive officer (CEO) and general manager Marlon Yarde gave this assurance, as he confirmed that following the bank’s delisting from the Jamaican Stock Exchange (JSE) all trading of the CIBC FCIB Jamaican stock would have to be done via the BSE.
Yarde also told BARBADOS BUSINESS AUTHORITY that the BSE’s rule requirements were not the same as Jamaica’s and hence “there is. . . no violation on the part of CIBC FCIB to the rules of the BSE”.
“CIBC FCIB along with the exchanges has put procedures in place to ensure that the Jamaica shareholders will not be disadvantaged, including making provision that shareholders can move their immobilised shares from the Jamaica Central Securities Depository Inc. to the Barbados Central Securities Depository Inc. via Inter CSD Movement at no cost to the shareholder for a one-year period after delisting,” he explained.
Yarde said the “main benefit” for the BSE was that “any trading of shares that previously occurred on the JSE by the approximately 800 shareholders that were in the Jamaica market will occur on the board of the BSE but he added: “It is true that there was not a lot of trading being done in Jamaica.
The CEO also pointed out that on September 16, 2009, Sagicor Financial corporation was also delisted from the JSE “but not for the same reason”.
“Their reason for delisting was ‘insignificant trading activity in the company’s shares which did not justify the operational cost of maintaining this listing’.
“Arrangements were made for Jamaica shareholders to trade their shares on the [Trinidad & Tobago Tobago Stock Exchange] and the BSE,” he explained.
