NCB Financial Group Limited (NCBFG) through its wholly owned subsidiary, NCB Global Holdings Limited (NCBGH) has completed payment for 74,230,750 ordinary shares in Guardian Holdings Limited (GHL), officially taking its stake in the Trinidad and Tobago-based company to 62 per cent.
Monday's payment follows the granting of all necessary regulatory approvals, including in Jamaica and Trinidad & Tobago, and the closing of NCBGH’s take-over of GHL after 17 months of delays.
NCB chairman Michael Lee-Chin said the transaction is a game changer in the history of the region.
“Amidst the context of the de-risking impacting the region, we are proud and excited about the implications and prospects of two leading indigenous Caribbean institutions coming together to drive economic growth, customer and shareholder value,” Lee-Chin said in a statement on Monday.
NCBFG and NCBGH thanked all stakeholders for their support in bringing this transaction to a close, particularly all GHL shareholders who contributed to the success of the offer, NCB said.
A net total of 117,971,970 shares were tendered in response to the offer, after taking into account 796,364 shares tendered but not accepted based on the offer conditions.
Patrick Hylton, Group President and CEO of NCBFG added, “Each having become stand-alone regional leaders, NCB and GHL combined have the opportunity to become a world-class financial services conglomerate, which has positive implications for our shareholders, our region and its citizens.”
Since the acquisition of the first block of shares by NCB in 2016, the Guardian Group has seen opportunities for a very positive impact for shareholders, clients and employees, according to GHL CEO Ravi Tewari.
“This further deepening of the relationship between two leading Caribbean companies augurs well for the acceleration of these positive impacts for Guardian and the region,” he said.
