By Clinton Urling
Guyana’s commercial banks are enjoying particularly strong success in the current economy with excellent bank liquidity positions and very substantial profit margins, a reality recently reinforced by Mr. John Tracey, CEO of the Guyana Bank for Trade and Industry (GBTI), at an event to launch the Global Trade Finance Programme.
Indeed, the financial and physical evidence everywhere shows just how well Guyana’s banks emerged virtually unscathed by the recent global financial crises and the credit market crunch. The magnificent and grand architectural structures that are home to corporate headquarters for these financial giants dominate the urban landscape as monuments to their strong positions. The government likewise has collected its fair share of tax revenues from this thriving industry. Banks also have expanded by opening branches to all areas of the country, the most recent being the GBTI and Republic bank facilities in the Diamond, East Bank area.