The Guyana Government is currently wooing several international financial institutions as it seeks to expand the local market, and according to President Dr Irfaan Ali engagements are currently ongoing with at least two major United States-based commercial banks on expanding their services here.
These two banks are Bank of America and Citibank.
“We are developing our market. Our market will become more sophisticated in the future, the financial services will be much more robust…” the Head of State expressed during a press conference today.
Only on Thursday, President Ali along with senior government officials met with representatives from the Bank of America, who were in Guyana on an exploratory mission.
The visiting delegation included the Managing Director – Global Energy Corporate Banking, Donald Ward Rickertsen; Managing Director – Head of Global Export Agency Finance, Patrick William Gang and Director – Regional Corporate Banking, Diego Armando Torres-Luna.
Asked about that meeting, the Head of State told this publication that he indicated to the Bank of America officials that his government is looking to have another commercial bank of international standing operating in Guyana.
“The meeting with the officials from the Bank of America is exactly what we’re having every day; we’re having every single major financial institution, every single major multinational business coming to our shores looking at opportunities, looking at how they can contribute to the development of our country, looking at the space through which they can operate.”
“So, Bank of America came, examining opportunities that exist her for them. They had elaborate meetings with the Minister of Finance. We raised with them exactly what is in the public domain, that we do have an interest in one more commercial bank of international standing, preferably an American Bank of international standing.”
Bank of America is one of the world’s leading financial institutions, serving individuals, small- and middle-market businesses, large corporations, and governments with a full range of banking, investment management and other financial and risk management products and services. The bank was founded in San Francisco, California in 1923. It is the second-largest banking institution in the United States, after JPMorgan Chase, and the second-largest bank in the world by market capitalization.
Citibank is the consumer division of financial services multinational Citigroup. Citibank was founded in 1812 as the City Bank of New York, and later became First National City Bank of New York. Citibank provides credit cards, mortgages, personal loans, commercial loans, and lines of credit.
