Silence from GBC remains unbroken while sources say new Chinese developer could be the bank’s saviour
As the silence from the Global Bank of Commerce (GBC) continues –
despite complaints from depositors who are unable to withdraw
their money – D.Gisele Isaac says the bank appears to be insolvent
but unwilling to admit it publicly.
Jack Stroll, who deposited more than US$10 million into the bank;
the Steven Morgan Foundation, which donated US$1 million to the
Barbuda hurricane relief efforts; and, reportedly, other persons,
including retirees, have been unable to access access their funds, in
some cases for several years now.
No director or senior officer of GBC has offered an explanation or
apology, although the bank has been accused of insolvency.
Rather, Finance Minister Gaston Browne has been the only one to
offer an “excuse” and, earlier, to defend the the financial institution
and its chief executive officer, Brian Stuart-Young.
However, Isaac, the chairman of the United Progressive Party (UPP),
says the bank appears to have already collapsed, and that might be
the reason for the absence of any official word from its management
or directors.
She says that claims by Browne – that GBC had been suffering from
correspondent-banking issues since 2017, especially as it relates to
Stroll being unable to access his funds – do not appear to be true.
If there were issues with the bank’s liquidity since seven years ago,
Isaac asks, why has no one – not even the Financial Services
Regulatory Commission (FSRC) – stepped in to protect the interest
of its depositors?
That was D.Gisele Isaac, chairman of the United Progressive
Party.
In the meantime, observers are speculating whether a bailout of the
bank is underway, as certain sources claim that a recent Chinese
investor – who has registered about 10 companies here already – is
being seen as the bank’s saviour.
His other interests, the sources say, lie in housing and in the
establishment of a hotel resort at Morris Bay, as well as in the
manufacture of tobacco products.
