Fresh from a record-breaking profit performance in 2020, Grace Kennedy announced the signing of an agreement to acquire all the shares of Scotia Insurance Eastern Caribbean Limited subject to regulatory approval.
Grace Kennedy HQ in Kingston
Scotia Insurance operates in seven countries in the Eastern Caribbean: Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia and St. Vincent and the Grenadines. Scotia Insurance offers credit protection regionally to customers of Scotiabank on personal loans, residential mortgages, personal lines of credit, personal and small business credit cards.
According to Don Wehby, CEO of Grace Kennedy, “the operation is profitable but not highly profitable”. Grace’s ownership is likely to result in lower operating cost and a vehicle to do business in other countries and for other financial institutions.
In an investors briefing on Monday, Wehby stated that the proposed acquisition is one of ten that the group is looking at currently, at various stages of assessment or negotiation, including some being stress tested and others at the legal stages.
Wehby in answer to a question on the growth rate of 2020 continuing into 2021 confirmed, that it will as the 2020 growth was achieved after years of work to lay the foundation for it to happen.
tTech limited is a Junior Market that seems set to benefit when the acquisition is concluded, the extent of its involvement will depend on the technology in use and whether the acquisition will continue to utilize the current infrastructure or not. tTech is a major Information Technology supplier to Grace.
Grace is listed on the Jamaica Stock Exchange and currently trades at $90.99, the shares are trading on the Trinidad and Tobago Stock Exchange at TT$4.50, in line with the JSE price.
