THE local banking industry continues to flourish and testimony to this is Republic Bank Guyana’s first-quarter profit of $1.1 billion.

Following up on its overall profit of $3.8 billion for 2019, the company recorded an after-tax profit of $1,117,000,000 for the first quarter of the financial year 2019/2020. This represented an increase of $161 million or 16 per cent when compared to the corresponding period last year.

Added to the “significant improvement” in profits, the bank, in a notice, said its total assets grew by $20 billion or 11.6 per cent and customers’ deposits also grew by $14.8 billion or by 10 per cent year-on-year.

“As we move forward, your bank will continue to explore the various opportunities that present themselves and remain optimistic that our objectives for the year will be achieved,” said Chairman of Republic Bank, Nigel Baptiste.

Late last year, the bank was heavily criticised by its customers because of “inefficient” services which were being offered by the bank, especially since its transition to a new banking platform.

Minister of Finance, Winston Jordan was reported as saying: “the situation has to do with their (Republic Bank) IT (Information Technology) systems and not a lack of money… the issues is the ability to get the money on time and in a manner that other banks are offering a service.”

Republic Bank had transitioned to its new banking platform on November 4, 2019. The company, in a press statement subsequent to its transition, had said: “as with the introduction of any new system, we are experiencing some challenges. We recognise the impact to our service delivery and wish to assure you, our valued customers and stakeholders, that we are committed to resolving these challenges in the shortest timeframe possible.”

Baptiste, in apologising to customers, said: “we take this opportunity to again apologise to our valued stockholders and clients for the inconvenience experienced during our recent IT conversion and thank you for your continued patience and support.”

In 2018, the bank achieved a profit after tax of $3.1 billion, compared to $2.7 billion in 2017. According to the bank’s 2018 annual report, apart from the normal banking operations which accounted for $2,951.4 million, the increase was due to an extraordinary gain realised from the sale of a fixed asset.

Former Managing Director of Republic Bank Guyana Ltd, Richard Sammy, in his report, had said against a challenging external environment, the bank focused on improving its operational efficiency by aggressively managing costs, restructuring workflow processes and reviewing systems and procedures.

Baptiste had also said in 2018 that, as Guyana prepares for first oil in 2020, Republic Bank is committed to supporting this emerging sector as well as Government-led initiatives to diversify some of the traditional sectors of the economy. International Oil and Gas companies are committed to further exploration which will require mobilisation of both foreign and local resources. “This is expected to bolster positive relationships with small and medium enterprises and further enhance prospects and perspectives of Guyana’s natural resource potential,” said Baptiste. Republic Bank, he said, remains committed to the long term sustainable development of the financial sector through enabling greater access to affordable financing options across all segments, improved deployment of technological solutions and meeting the market at the point of need, while at the same time supporting opportunities for economic growth.