Trinidad-based Republic Financial Holdings Limited (RFHL) has acquired a 74.99% stake in financial services firm Cayman National Corporation (CNC).
The overall cost of the transaction was just over $198m (£150m, €175m).
As a result of this transaction, the assets under management of the RFHL Group will increase to approximately $12bn.
Established in 1974, CNC Group has five subsidiaries: Cayman National Bank, Cayman National Fund Services, Cayman National Securities, Cayman National Bank (Isle of Man), and Cayman National (Dubai).
It is the largest financial services company based in the Cayman Islands, providing banking, trust and company management, fund administration, and wealth management services to clients in the Cayman Islands and around the world.
CNC is (and will continue to be) publicly traded on the Cayman Islands Stock Exchange. RFHL has confirmed that all employees of the CNC Group will remain following the acquisition of the majority shareholding, and that the bank will not be rebranded.
Eager to learn
RFHL chairman Ronald Harford said: “The acquisition of CNC will allow us to combine and leverage the talents of our two world-class organisations. We are particularly eager to learn from Cayman National’s experience in international financial services and serving high net worth clients.
“Cayman National is a leading full-service institution in one of the world’s most sophisticated financial centres, its brand is resilient and strong, and its management and employees are a critical part of that brand strength.
“We do not want this to change. It will continue to be the same bank known, loved, and run by a very strong and experienced team of Caymanians.”
This acquisition is part of RFHL’s strategic expansion, as it is currently in the process of acquiring the St Maarten, Guyana and seven other eastern Caribbean operations of Canadian firm ScotiaBank.
RFHL operates in several territories, including Barbados, Cayman Islands, Grenada, Ghana, Guyana, St Lucia, Suriname, and Trinidad and Tobago.
