Bank of Guyana: First Citizens didn't inform regulator of Scotia deal

The Bank of Guyana claims First Citizens did not inform the financial sector regulator about its decision to buy Scotiabank's assets in that country.

In a statement on Thursday, Guyana's Central Bank said despite a notice from First Citizens published in the TT press, where the TT bank announced its intention to acquire Scotia's assets in Guyana, the regulator was not informed.

"First Citizens does not have a licence to operate in Guyana. First Citizens has not submitted an application in keeping with the requirements of the Financial Institutions Act to the Bank of Guyana to acquire control of a bank operating in Guyana," the statement said.

First Citizens, in which the TT government has just over 55 per cent ownership, does not currently have a presence in Guyana.

Its notice said any agreement with Scotiabank would be subject to regulatory approval.

First Citizens did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In 2019, when Scotia attempted to sell its Guyana assets to another TT bank, Republic Financial Holdings Ltd, the Bank of Guyana denied the transaction, with governor Dr Gobind Ganga saying had it gone through, Republic would have had over 50 per cent ownership of the assets and deposits in the Guyanese financial sector, which would have raised major concerns, such as impact on competition.