Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce’s (CIBC) plan to sell most of FirstCaribbean International Bank (FCIB) for $1.6 billion has been rejected by regulators.
Both institutions yesterday announced that the proposed divestment of 66.73 per cent share of FCIB to GNB Financial Group Limited (GNB) would not be proceeding following this development.
It marks the second time in about two years that CIBC’s effort to reduce its Caribbean exposure has failed, after the Canadian bank abandoned a decision to list its Caribbean subsidiary’s shares on the New York Stock Exchange in 2018 – citing “market conditions at this juncture”.
“While this transaction would have supported FirstCaribbean’s long-term growth prospects, it is only one way of supporting growth for our bank going forward. CIBC has held a majority ownership stake in FirstCaribbean for a number of years, and there exists an excellent working relationship with a shared focus on meeting the needs of our clients” said FCIB chief executive officer Colette Delaney said yesterday. (SC)
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