BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, CMC – Scotia Insurance Caribbean Limited (SICL) says it has closed the sale of its operations to the Jamaica-based GraceKennedy Financial Group Limited (GK).
The amount for the transaction was not disclosed. Still, in a statement, SICL said that in August last year, the two companies had agreed to acquire 100 percent of the SICL, which previously offered credit protection on personal loans, residential mortgages, personal lines of credit, and personal and small business credit cards in five Caribbean countries namely, Barbados, Belize, the British Virgin Islands, The Cayman Islands, and the Turks and Caicos Islands.
“This transaction has no impact on Scotiabank entities in Barbados. Scotiabank customers in Barbados will continue to have insurance options through a distribution agreement Scotiabank has entered into with GraceKennedy.
“Scotiabank continues to invest in the Caribbean through the expansion of new products and services in insurance, wealth management, and banking, including the rollout of next-generation ATMs, recent upgrades to our digital banking platforms, enhancements to our mobile app, and the recent upgrade of our new online platform.”
GraceKennedy, on its website, describes itself as “one of the Caribbean’s largest and most dynamic Food and Financial corporate entities started in Jamaica in 1922, and comprises companies in the Caribbean, North, and Central America, the United Kingdom and Africa”.
In confirming the sale, Grace Kennedy said that SICL would be rebranded as GK Life and an addition to the seven Caribbean markets GK Life currently serves.
GK Life said there would be no changes to existing customer policies associated with the acquisition.
The chief executive officer of Group GraceKennedy, Don Wehby, said, “This is another bold step towards the fulfillment of our strategy to grow GK’s insurance business in the Caribbean, as we continue to expand the footprint of our Financial Group in the region.
“Adding these five new territories to GK Life means that we have grown GK’s life insurance business to 12 new markets in less than two years.
M&A (mergers and acquisitions) continues to be a key strategic driver of growth for our Group as we achieve our 2030 vision. Our M&A Unit is in discussions regarding several M&A transactions locally and internationally, and we are looking forward to what the future has in store,” he added.
Steven Whittingham, the deputy chief executive officer of the GK Financial Group (GKFG) with direct responsibility for the insurance segment, said, “GKFG has been strategically building out its insurance business and expanding its presence across the region.
“In aggregate, we now have Life operations in 12 markets with GK Life, Health and Life operations in Jamaica with canopy insurance, property, and casualty operations in six markets with GK Insurance and Key Insurance and Insurance Brokerage operations in two markets with Allied and GK Insurance Brokers.
“GKFG has established itself as a major pan-Caribbean insurer. We believe that with our extensive suite of insurers, products, technology, and talent, we are well-positioned to continue to grow both revenue and profits in keeping with GK’s 2030 Vision.”
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