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Author Topic: Lawrence Duprey/Clico Thread.  (Read 40695 times)

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Offline Deeks

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Re: Lawrence Duprey/Clico Thread.
« Reply #180 on: June 09, 2015, 01:25:41 PM »
Ian Garcia, former Belmont and Essex goal keeper. Was not a bad keeper.

Offline Flex

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Re: Lawrence Duprey/Clico Thread.
« Reply #181 on: June 16, 2015, 02:04:07 AM »
TWO QUIT
By Ria Taitt


The CLICO board has collapsed.

In a major slap to Central Bank Governor Jwala Rambarran, and in a most unwelcome development for the Government, two directors of the CLICO board, Jagdeesh Siewrattan and Denyse Mehta, have resigned on principle, citing the Central Bank Governor's “unfair, unjust and insensitive” dismissal of ex-chairman Gerald Yetming and managing director Carolyn John.

The board, which is supposed to consist of five directors, now has only Krishna Bodhai and Wendy Ho Sing, the new executive chairman. But with this fragmentation of the CLICO Board, created by the resignations, there is now no quorum.

Siewrattan's letter of resignation, dated June 12, 2015, and Mehta's letter, dated June 14, 2015, both copied to Minister of Finance Larry Howai, have come in the wake of the June 5 dismissal of Yetming and John, following the controversy over payments to former CLICO directors.

Both Siewrattan and Mehta were critical of the Central Bank's handling of the situation and corroborated Yetming's claim that the Central Bank knew and supported the decision of CLICO to pay the former directors and at no time indicated its opposition until after public controversy developed.

Mehta suggested the Central Bank's behaviour was “unethical” because of its failure to acknowledge joint accountability in the matter. In standing in solidarity with Yetming and John, Siewrattan said if they were dismissed, then so should he.

In her letter, addressed to the Governor, Mehta, who was appointed on September 31, 2010, stated that it had become untenable to continue on the board in view of the “unfair, unjust and unprofessional treatment meted out to my fellow directors, Gerald Yetming and Carolyn John...by you, with great disrespect”.

In complaining about the manner in which Yetming, a former minister of finance, and John were treated, Mehta said: “In addition to them not being given the chance to defend themselves, they were falsely charged with 'trumped-up' allegations that they did not follow instructions regarding approval of payments by the Central Bank to residual STIP holders”.

Mehta stated that at the board meeting of April 29, 2015, an update on the payment plan for non-assenting STIP holders was provided. Given the “Clico Resolution” by the Central Bank, it was the duty of the managing director to execute this plan with the Central Bank officials.

“There was a clearly established protocol for operating as this was not the first payment plan to be executed. There was no objection by any director or from the Central Bank representative, Mr Neil Dingwall, at the board meeting about the plan. Neither was there any objection from Mr Dingwall when it was mentioned that related parties would not be treated differently, an opinion shared by you, Governor, on public television, where you stated that all creditors must be paid.”

Mehta said notwithstanding these statements, there was a clearly-defined and well-established payout process with the Central Bank, which involved senior officials such as Carl Hiralal, Nicole Chapman, Neil Dingwall and Denise Daniel.

“It is my understanding that all of these members participated with Ms John and Ms Hoyte from CLICO. I also know that payments were fully under way by May 13, 2015 and by the last meeting of June 3, 2015, the board was informed that 219 applications were already processed with no expressed concern raised by Neil Dingwall or the Central Bank,” the letter continued.

Mehta stated further that at a special board meeting of May 12, 2015, a letter from the Central Bank was presented where CLICO was directed not to pay Ms Gita Sakal, or any other defendants of the fraud on the public proceedings.

“Given this expressed statement, it is my knowledge that this direction is what was acted upon by Ms John and by extension members of the Central Bank. No other variation in the payment plan was presented to the Board to change our direction,” Mehta stated.

She added: “It is therefore against the principles of natural justice to suggest that the chairman or the MD acted unilaterally, especially as this was a joint process. I therefore plead that only after it emerged in the press that the former directors were paid, and there was a public uproar, that procedural infringement was claimed, leading to the dismissals nearly one month after the payouts commenced. I contend that it was highly unethical of all the Central Bank officials to take no joint accountability for the plan that was already in process.

“I therefore feel that the values espoused by the Central Bank in the handling of this matter are not in sync with my own personal beliefs and I stand with my dismissed colleagues and recognise our sterling contribution made in the recovery of CLICO.”

Mehta said she fully endorsed the work involved in the turnaround of CLICO spearheaded by chairman Yetming, who led a decisive and honourable team, supported by the exemplary work of John, “the front, middle and back of the rebuilding of CLICO”, leading to increased confidence by the Government, policy-holders and the staff at the institution.
 
Siewrattan says:

Siewrattan said the reason for his resignation was the “insensitive dismissal of the two players who played the dominant role in the recovery of CLICO (Yetming and John)”.

Siewrattan also stated that throughout the deliberations of the board, its members, led by Yetming and John, “paid meticulous attention to directions from the Central Bank”.

“Messrs Yetming and John were in constant contact with Central Bank staff. Decisions taken were always based on collegial consensus basis. On these grounds, I plead that the basis for dismissing them ought to apply to me as well. Hence the submission of my resignation,” he stated.

Like Mehta's letter, that of Siewrattan referred to the fact that John, a former CLICO employee who was in retirement when CLICO collapsed, made the sacrifice of returning to rebuild the institution.

“In a situation of declining staff who sought greener pastures, she stuck steadfastly to the task at hand, working long hours not only to maintain the administrative workload, but was the institutional memory bank for lawyers, accountants and management consultants who populated CLICO during this trying period,” Siewrattan stated.

Noting that she was the chief witness at the arbitration proceedings of MHTL (Methanol Holdings), Siewrattan said John was the intellectual database for a diverse set of information required for charting CLICO to safety.

Like Mehta, Siewrattan resigned from MHTL as well. He said as a result of his CLICO directorship, he was also on the board of MHTL and Oman Methanol Company and that those companies should be advised of his resignation of their respective boards.


The real measure of a man's character is what he would do if he knew he would never be found out.

Offline rotatopoti3

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Duprey wants back CLICO!
« Reply #182 on: June 27, 2015, 08:44:12 PM »
Former CL Financial chairman: Return my shares and I will fix company
By Asha Javeed (Express).


DUPREY WANTS BACK CLICO

LAWRENCE DUPREY feels he was duped into disposing of his company, CL Financial (CLF), to the Government in January 2009.

Six years after the Government took over management of Duprey's CLF to stem money problems in two subsidiaries—Colonial Life Insurance Company of Trinidad and Tobago (CLICO) and the CLICO Investment Bank (CIB)—Duprey wants the State to return it.

And he's prepared to challenge the Government legally for it if the State does not submit a proposal plan to exit CLF to its shareholders by month's end.

Duprey, 81, remains the main shareholder of CLF.

In March, Central Bank Governor Jwala Rambarran announced that CLICO had turned a profit and was able to satisfy its main creditor—the Government—with a $7 billion payment.

That $7 billion (which comprised $4 billion in cash and three CLICO assets—Angostura Holdings Ltd, CL World Brands Ltd and Home Construction Ltd), Rambarran had said, represented 40 per cent of the debt owed to Government, which works out to $17.5 billion.

But former attorney general Anand Ramlogan had pegged the bailout figure at $25 billion, while the country's former and current finance ministers, Winston Dookeran and Larry Howai, had estimated it at about $22 billion.

“The company is easy to fix. The economy and the country need that company. I have unfinished business to take care of,” Duprey told the Sunday Express in a phone interview from his Florida, USA, home last week.

In a message to the Government, he said: “Hand me back my shares and I will come in and fix it.”

The Government has been managing the CLF conglomerate through a shareholders agreement originally signed in June 2009 and which has had multiple extensions as the Government seeks to exit the company.

Fired CLICO chairman Gerald Yetming remains the chairman of CLF, Angostura and HCL.

The Government will not exit CLF until its debt has been satisfied.

But Duprey said he was coerced into agreeing into the situation in the first place.

He provided the Sunday Express with a letter which he sent to then Central Bank Governor Ewart Williams to alert him of the liquidity situation.

The letter, he said, was drafted by his then adviser Ram Ramesh (the former chief executive of what used to be CLF subsidiary Caribbean Money Market Brokers).

The January 13 letter, said Duprey, did not call for a bailout, but liquidity support.

“CL Financial being a significant part of the financial sector has been disproportionately impacted by these adverse conditions. Many of our customers are also affected and are consequently calling on their reserve cash positions. Thus far, all our member companies have been able to deal with their commitments.

“However, we need to develop a comprehensive contingency plan to meet any further developments, if this were to follow a similar pattern to other countries. As a result, CL Financial is taking urgent and decisive action,” the letter said.

The letter outlined CLF's assets for re-structuring—real estate, $2.5 billion; manufacturing, $6.3 billion; energy, $7 billion; and financial services at $8 billion, for a total of $23.9 billion.

A complex action plan

“We are in the process of realigning the asset-liability structure of the group to better meet the current liquidity situation. This is a complex action plan that we are embarking on immediately, including initiatives such as merger of certain entities within the group with strategic partners and/or sale of certain assets in order to raise liquidity.

“As you would appreciate, these initiatives would need some time before they yield the desired results. In the event that the financial crisis deepened in the local market, we may need urgent liquidity support to be made available to the group. In this regard, we would like to discuss the approach of the Central Bank toward supporting the financial sector and, by extension, the CL Financial Group, if conditions were to deteriorate,” the letter said.

This letter was submitted by the Central Bank to the commission of enquiry conducted by Sir Anthony Colman into the collapse of CLICO and related CLF subsidiaries.

But Duprey used it to illustrate that the assets of CLF and CLICO had value, which the Government is now reaping, and that had the Government provided “liquidity support”, as requested, then he would still control his company.

“The whole essence of the letter was misguided by the powers that be. The CIB matter should have been handled by the Deposit Insurance Corporation (DIC). It was the Central Bank's actions which caused a further run on the company and in Barbados,” he recalled.

He blames politics for how he eventually lost control of it.

“The Government came in and they wanted certain assets to satisfy the Statutory Fund. It was clear manipulation by the Government,” he said.

If Duprey's words sound like those of a jilted chairman, at least they have been consistent.

In his witness statement provided to the commission of enquiry in October 2012, he said: “The global collapse coinciding with an ever impossible revamp of the regulatory framework and a refusal of Government-owned entities to back the group after all the years of benefit that they had received from the interest income that the group had generated led to the need for some ultimate Government support.

“I would have preferred, as I deal with further on in this statement of the intervention had not been so politically motivated and had been directed at protection for I believe had that been the position we would have fared great deal better.

“Losing all the intellectual capital as a condition of intervention was a bad decision and was not one replicated in the USA or the UK. It is of note in this regard that I was firmly of the view in January 2009 that the run on CIB and the resultant liquidity or cash flow issues was much inspired by the decision of State-owned or run entities making decisions at or about the same time to withdraw rolling deposits which had been previously rolled from maturity to maturity without question. The decision to seek funds back came in reality out of the blue and caused severe problems.”

Duprey told the Sunday Express he feels he was victimised because he was a friend of former United National Congress prime minister Basdeo Panday, so he left Trinidad immediately after the memorandum of understanding was signed.

“I thought they were about to put a pair of handcuffs on me and put me in jail. I thought that is the action John Jeremie (former attorney general) would have taken so I never came back,” he said.

Asked why he never commented before, he said: “I didn't think it was a public matter. It was a private company.”

Duprey: I can fix CLICO

The disclosures at the CLICO commission were startling—million-dollar salaries paid to executives, companies created by executives and hiving off millions in contracts, and breaches in governance—all at the expense of policyholders.

CLICO was an insurance company formed by Cyril Duprey in 1936.

The reins were passed on in 1988 to his nephew, Lawrence, who grew the company into the conglomerate CLF.

When former Central Bank governor Williams announced the bailout of the company, he said it was to reduce the “systemic risks” to the country's financial sector.

But Duprey countered the Central Bank never explained its strategy to him.

And now, CLF and CLICO are doing well, and in his mind, what the Government has basically done is nationalise its prime assets.

Duprey now has a team negotiating with stakeholders on his behalf—former Hindu Credit Union (HCU) president Harry Harnarine, former CEO Claudius Dacon and Carlton Reis.

To this end, he has also retained former attorney general Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj to file a constitutional motion against the Government for breach of contract and an oppression claim.

“I am in touch with what is happening globally. I know what to do and I can fix it,” he said.

However, Duprey's CLF would be a shell of what it once was—several assets were sold for a cumulative $5.5 billion. They are Primera Energy, Lascelles De Mercado, Burn Stewart Distillers, Valpark mall and Atlantic Plaza, its Methanol Holdings (Trinidad) Ltd shareholding and its W Fort Lauderdale Hotel.

Howai: Legal action could be long

When the Sunday Express questioned Howai about Duprey's request, he responded: “Mr Duprey has not contacted the Government on this matter. The CLICO Shareholders Agreement is an agreement between the Government and the CLICO shareholders. The Government cannot unilaterally conclude the agreement. This has to be done in consultation with the shareholders. The Government is still negotiating with the legally appointed negotiators of the shareholders.”

When asked about civil action against the State, he answered: “If, as you say, it is Mr Duprey's intention to 'initiate civil action against the State', I expect that it would be a long, drawn-out affair with little immediate impact. While the Government remains mindful of the constitutional rights of all persons, it will not be intimidated into arriving at any conclusion it does not think is in the best interests of the country.”

The majority of the Government's bailout was spent on paying back policyholders of CLICO and British American's Executive Flexible Premium Annuity (EFPA), which was a facility created by CLICO to raise money and bore an above-market annual interest rate of ten per cent.

Those attractive interest rates had drawn over 25,000 people to invest billions, and CLICO's reach had stretched from credit unions to prime State enterprises to owing millions to local banks.

Duprey had described his empire, which at one time comprised some 65 companies in 32 countries, as being caught up in a ­perfect storm of economic collapse.

« Last Edit: June 28, 2015, 04:49:05 AM by Flex »
Ah say it, how ah see it

Offline Flex

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Re: Lawrence Duprey/Clico Thread.
« Reply #183 on: October 04, 2015, 02:45:48 AM »
Clico has over $22bn in fund
By Rhonda Krystal Rambally (Guardian).


An actuarial certificate signed by Paul Ngai of Prescience Insurance Consultants and Actuaries, dated April 20, says he was advised by the management of Clico that the assets pledged to the Statutory Fund total more than $22 billion.

Ngai found there were sufficient assets in the fund to make a partial payment in the settlement of certain policyholder liabilities.

This information was received by the Clico Policyholders Group (CPG) over the weekend and mere days before the 2016 budget presentation.

Ngai stated he examined the financial position and valued the policy benefit liabilities of the company for its Statutory Fund as at December 31, 2014.

The total in the fund is $22,428,457,543.00

In the document, headlined Actuarial Certification pursuant to the Insurance Act of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, Ngai wrote, “I meet the appropriate qualification standards and am familiar with the valuation and capital adequacy requirements applicable to life insurance companies in Trinidad and Tobago.”

In Ngai’s opinion and based on unaudited financial and source data information provided to him by the management of Clico, he found that:

•The valuation of the policy liabilities has been in accordance with generally accepted actuarial principles with such changes as determined and directions made by the Draft Insurance (Caribbean Policy Premium Method) Regulations;

•The methods and assumptions used to calculate the policy liabilities are appropriate to the circumstances of the Statutory Fund and of the said policies and claims;

•The amount of policy liabilities that makes proper provision for the future payments under the Company’s policies is less than the total amount of the Statutory Fund; and

•As a result, there are adequate assets in Clico’s Statutory Fund to fund a partial payment in the settlement of certain policyholder liabilities, backed by said Statutory Fund, to be made in accordance with the Directions of the Central Bank of Trinidad and Tobago.”

John: I cannot go on record

Contacted yesterday, Clico’s terminated managing director Carolyn John said she could not comment since it would be a breach of confidentiality.

“I cannot go on record.”

Permell: When will $$ be paid?

CPG chairman, Peter Permell, yesterday said the group was not at all surprised by this revelation as it was consistent with what sources had been saying. However, he said, the big question was when would the payment be made.

Permell said, “The only thing we were not quite clear on was the actual size of the fund in terms of dollar value or the specific assets pledged. In short, these numbers clearly indicate that Clico now has sufficient assets to pay its contractual liabilities in full, relative to its Statutory Fund.”

He explained that from the $22.4 billion, $8 billion had to be deducted, which was previously paid to the Government and the “non-assenting” policyholders representing 85 per cent of contractual liabilities.

“This leaves a balance of $14.4 billion to cover $9 billion of traditional policyholders’ liabilities, $1.4 billion to pay the Government and non-assenting the remaining 15 per cent; and the ‘assenting’ policyholders the balance contractually due to them,” he added.

He believed the information would be helpful to new Finance Minister Colm Imbert in getting a better appreciation of the “true facts” relative to the Clico Resolution Plan, particularly in light of his predecessor Larry Howai’s apparent challenges in obtaining information from Clico and the Central Bank. The CPG is now calling for an urgent meeting with the new Finance Minister.

Permell referred to Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley’s statement in the run up to the general election that, “We of the PNM, have no record of turning our backs on a government commitment made by the Government of Trinidad and Tobago and when this Government has made that commitment we will pay you the money.”

The CPG chairman said this was equally applicable to Clico policyholders and as Prime Minister, so far, Rowley had not done anything to suggest that he was not a man of his word.

Permell said, “It is now a matter of history that the PNM lost the 2010 general election and was unable to make good on its promise.

“Accordingly, Dr Rowley must be aware that it would be a travesty and a betrayal of the worst kind, having returned to government, almost as if by divine intervention; and the PNM either reneges or fails to complete their task for a second time, in circumstances where the Statutory Fund is now fully funded with over $22.4 billion.”

Flashback—Clico collapse

Government was forced to bail out Clico after it collapsed in January 2009.

A January 30, 2009, release from the Central Bank headlined ‘The Government of Trinidad and Tobago and the Central Bank of Trinidad and Tobago Moves to Protect Investors’ stated that in a move to protect the interests of depositors and policyholders, the minister of Finance Karen Nunez-Tesheira and the Governor of the Central Bank had reached an agreement with the CL Financial Limited Group for the provision of a package of financial support for the group’s financial services companies.

Some of the key elements of that agreement were as follows:

*CL Financial will sell, liquidate or collateralise its assets and allocate the proceeds to meeting in full all the requirements of the Statutory Fund for both Clico and the British American Insurance Company (Baico), thereby protecting, in full, all its insurance and pension fund clients;

*The Government will provide funding support to fully back Clico and Baico to meet any Statutory Fund deficits that might emerge after the company has made all possible arrangements to place satisfactory levels of cash and other assets in the Statutory Fund in order to ensure the short as well as medium and long-term liquidity and stability of Clico.

*The Central Bank will assume control of Clico Investment Bank under the provisions of Section 44D of the Central Bank Act.

Earlier this year, four former Clico directors received close to $36 million in payout.

The real measure of a man's character is what he would do if he knew he would never be found out.

Offline Flex

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Re: Lawrence Duprey/Clico Thread.
« Reply #184 on: April 09, 2016, 02:30:22 AM »
Govt bids to get back $20B from Clico bailout
By Clint Chan Tack (Newsday).


DECLARING that the former People’s Partnership (PP) failed to resolve the Clico issue, Finance Minister Colm Imbert yesterday said Government is moving to get back the $20 billion bailout of the collapsed insurance giant.

“I have restored order and business common sense to this process.

We are now back on track in terms of recovering the $20 billion of the public funds that have been pumped into Clico,” Imbert said in delivering the Mid-Year Review of the 2016 Budget in Parliament.

Imbert evoked howls of protest from Opposition MPs when he said, “I have requested the Central Bank, with whom I now meet regularly, to dispose, strictly in accordance with the shareholders’ agreement, of the remaining MIHL (Methanol International Holdings Limited) shares owned by Clico, at the valuation price, which is in the vicinity of $2 billion, as well as Clico’s traditional portfolio of insurance policies and other associated assets, valued at approximately $1 billion.”

He also said the Central Bank has been requested to transfer to Government, “Clico’s shares in Angostura, HCL and CL World Brands valued at $3 billion.”

Imbert explained once this transfer takes place, Government will take appropriate decisions, “to dispose of these assets in a sensible and productive manner.” He said Government will acquire lands owned by Angostura and HCL for public purposes such as housing, tourism and infrastructure.”

Imbert also said the Central Bank will begin the process of disposing of Clico’s shares in Republic Bank by 2017. Condemning the PP for underselling Clico’s shares in MHIL for $2 billion less than what they were worth and leaving the Clico resolution plan, “consumed by internal power plays, inertia , dithering, apathy and stagnation,” Imbert said all legitimate creditors and policyholders on the books will be repaid this year, now that Clico’s statutory fund has recovered.

Indicating he will inform the public of Government’s plans to monetise other CL Financial assets in due course, Imbert explained this was “all in the interest of recovering as much of taxpayers funds as is possible, setting liabilities to policyholders and depositors, getting revenue for the Government so deal with items of expenditure that we seeking.” Quoting the late Max Senhouse, Imbert quipped, “We need the money.”

The real measure of a man's character is what he would do if he knew he would never be found out.

Offline Flex

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Re: Lawrence Duprey/Clico Thread.
« Reply #185 on: April 28, 2016, 04:24:22 AM »
Duprey angry at CLF mishandling: ‘I’m not to blame for this fiasco’.
By Gail Alexander (Guardian).


CL Financial’s (CLF) majority shareholder Lawrence Duprey, as well as a new group called the Clico Stakeholders’ Alliance (CSA), are formulating legal action to block Government’s proposed sale of CLF assets.

This was confirmed by Duprey’s spokesman, Claudius Dacon, on Tuesday, following failed bids by Duprey to meet with Government to discuss Duprey’s plan to recover his former companies and repay the outstanding debt owed to Government from the 2009 bailout following CLF’s collapse.
This week’s development marks the culmination of efforts by Duprey, 82, over the past year to regain his former company.

Action has been brewing in the last few weeks since Duprey wrote Finance Minister Colm Imbert on March 23 offering an outline proposal to settle the Clico/CL Financial debt. The proposal had already been sent on March 22 to Central Bank Governor Dr Alvin St Hilaire.

In February, Hillaire had also received a request from Duprey for a meeting on Clico and CLF matters. Duprey had indicated that Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj, SC, and attorney Ronnie Bissessar had been retained to represent his interests.

In the March 23 letter, Duprey told Imbert: “I have assembled a knowledgeable team of legal and financial advisers and we stand ready to work with you to bring the best possible resolution of this matter in the interest of all stakeholders.”

But since nothing has been heard from Government, Dacon, former CEO of Colonial Life and Clico Bahamas, said Duprey was now in the process of formulating a pre-action protocol letter to send to Government soon.

Dacon said the CSA, an independent group headed by Tobago activist David Walker, comprises about 50 people “who don’t always agree with us but feel assets shouldn’t be sold off in a ‘fire sale’.”

The CSA includes former Clico employees and policyholders. Walker headed a Charlotteville group which successfully challenged the Tobago House of Assembly on a Charlotteville mall issue.

The parties are particularly concerned since Imbert, in his recent mid-year review, said Government was moving to recoup the $20 billion used for CLF’s bailout.

He said the Central Bank had been asked to dispose of the remaining Methanol International Holdings Limited shares owned by Clico, as well as Clico’s traditional portfolio of insurance policies and other associated assets.

Imbert said the Central Bank was also asked to transfer to Government, Clico’s shares in Angostura, Home Construction Limited and CL World Brands. He said once that was completed, Government “will take appropriate decisions to dispose of these assets” and would also acquire lands owned by Angostura and HCL.

The Central Bank, Imbert added, would begin disposing of Clico’s shares in Republic Bank by 2017. These proposals only relate to Clico and in “due course” Imbert said he would report on plans to monetise other assets held directly by CL Financial.

The T&T Guardian contacted Duprey early last week on his views of Government’s plan. He made it clear he was unhappy with that, saying the sale was a bad idea and that he could manage the assets so the companies could earn hard currency to assist T&T in its current economic constraints. He was bitter about measures taken by the last People’s Partnership (PP) government also and indicated action was ahead on the matter.

In a statement on Tuesday, Duprey stated: “I have chosen to speak now because the country needs a powerful, vibrant CLF.

“For seven long years I’ve been vilified in the media. One government minister after the other has lined up to claim the company that my uncle and I built was a Ponzi scheme.

“They and others claimed I am responsible for all the money that was taken from the taxpayer to rescue CL Financial.

“To support their claim it seems they have hidden all accounts from the public. Every administration has gone to great lengths to keep information from us. They are fighting all the way to the Privy Council to block disclosure of how the money was spent.“

He claimed: “They passed legislation making people like Gerald Yetming, Marlon Holder and all their other senior appointees immune from prosecution, apparently so that they can hide their actions.”

Duprey said the CLF rescue could not have cost TT$20 billion.

“This rescue was less complex and less costly than many in the international arena.

“Unlike many of the other rescues, our assets suffered a temporary diminution in value directly as a result of a global economic crisis. The other rescues were largely the result of bad investments in unrecoverable sub prime mortgages.

“CLF wasn’t in that position and just needed time for asset values to recover, as they did,” he added.

Saying CLF, which included forex generators, Methanol Holdings (Trinidad) Ltd (MHTL) and Methanol Holdings (International) Ltd (MHIL), were created for T&T, Duprey accused Government of selling the MHTL and MHIL companies “on the cheap, losing us a constant stream of foreign exchange.”

Duprey said CLF had “broken the effective monopoly of a small cartel of financial service providers in T&T” but the moves of subsequent governments had now eradicated that.

“The other financial services companies are once again free to exploit the market by giving negligible rates of return to savers.

“The Government’s actions allowed them to poach the CLF client base, reducing our value drastically. We created the largest and most valuable insurance infrastructure in the Caribbean.

“That included sales and support staff as well as a valuable portfolio of real estate. This has been destroyed for no good reason,” he said.

Duprey added: “I’m not to blame for this costly fiasco. My management and staff are not to blame. We created a fantastic company that should be helping T&T through this trying time in our history.

“Taxpayers could and should have been repaid within three years. We should now be generating masses of foreign exchange, offering savers sensible returns and leading T&T’s diversification efforts, as we have done successfully.

“Instead, CLF has been reduced to a bit part player that’s being stripped bare even now. CLF has so much to offer, access to accounting and other information will show that clearly.

“That is why each administration has gone to such lengths to hide the information. It is information that will set me free. They cannot stop ongoing disclosures like recent information about kickbacks ...”

He added: “We also need to return CLF to the control of professional businessmen with proud track records, away from politicians and political appointees. I have played my part in building this national treasure. I will now play my part as best possible in restoring the company to its much needed leading role.”

Legal action looms
Lawrence Duprey’s spokesman Claudius Dacon said Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj, who both Duprey and the CSA have engaged for the matter, is also a CSA member and is preparing the legal action against the Government. Dacon said Maharaj wrote to Imbert recently, informing him he was retained by Duprey concerning negotiation of CLF but received no reply.

Dacon said Duprey began talks with the past PP government in 2015 and was ready to negotiate for the return of CL Financial. He had spoken to then acting finance minister Vasant Bharath. Dacon claimed Bharath was positive but said solutions were required to say how Duprey would settle the debt and deal with negative public sentiment.

He said it was proposed that a reputable investment firm be hired to do due diligence on CLF and give a proper accounting of the debt owed. Once established and audited, he said it was proposed a firm of investment bankers would be contacted to use CLF’s assets to raise a loan to repay government.

“The problem is we don’t know how much we owe government and if they sell those assets they will never be able to recover sufficient money to repay the taxpayers and policyholders,” Dacon said.

“Lawrence left in 2009 with the assurance policyholders would get full benefits. That’s why he signed the agreement giving the previous government opportunity to seize CLF assets;  he was forcefully evicted. The company always had sufficient funds to deal with its liabilities, it wasn’t insolvent. It was illiquid,” he added.

It is understood another Duprey family branch is also exploring the matter. The T&T Guardian sent emailed queries to Imbert yesterday on whether Government is considering Duprey’s proposal, if it’s feasible and whether there are any talks with Duprey or Maharaj. Imbert replied that he had no comment at that time.

Also contacted, the Central Bank stated “these matters are confidential” and that it could not comment.

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Re: Lawrence Duprey/Clico Thread.
« Reply #186 on: May 16, 2017, 01:44:20 AM »
OLIVE BRANCH FOR DUPREY
By KWAME WEEKES (NEWSDAY).


FORMER CLICO jefe Lawrence Duprey and his policyholders will meet face-to-face today for the first time since the collapse of the insurance giant. An item on the agenda is whether Duprey will be prepared to take over the payment of money owed to stakeholders by the one-time flourishing financial conglomerate,

Plans for the olive branch meeting were afoot yesterday, with Policyholder Group chairman Peter Permell remaining tight-lipped over the venue – only that it is in north Trinidad and will be after lunch. But he confirmed Duprey himself will be there. “This is the first time that this policyholders’ group headed by yours truly has ever met with Mr Duprey or will ever be meeting with Mr Duprey,” Permell told Newsday yesterday,

“We have never met with him before, never met with him outside of this meeting that is going to come off tomorrow (today). I have never met with him before the crash or since the crash up to today.” Permell did not want to reveal the full agenda for the meeting, however he said that at the top is Finance Minister Colm Imbert’s statements on the CLICO/CLF Resolution Plan during his mid-year review in Parliament last week and “the way forward”, for his (Permell) group of policyholders to be paid their, “just due.” In Imbert’s mid-year review, he revealed that CL Financial now owes approximately $27.7 billion to taxpayers, $20.3 billion of which was directly injected into the company’s bailout since 2009. The difference, according to Imbert, was accrued via “advisory fees and other costs”, and other liabilities,

Imbert further estimated after “legitimate non-conflicted third party creditors” are paid, CLICO would be left with $2.8 billion in government bonds, cash and equity in several other companies,

Permell believes Imbert was “speaking in parables”, but truly repeating the government’s previously stated unwillingness to pay his group of policy holders,

Imbert said in the Senate in July 7, 2016, that Permell’s group of “assenting policyholders” assigned their rights to their policies to the government, when they accepted the former PP government’s offer of zero coupon bonds and CLICO Investment Fund shares,

“This group gave up their right to accrued interest and these individuals no longer have a contractual arrangement with CLICO, and do not form part of the Resolution Plan,” Imbert said,

Permell said the agreement referred to by Imbert was made between Government and the Central Bank-appointed Directors of CL Financial, who were placed in charge of the company when the Central Bank took control,

“We have not seen any such agreement and there is no way a government could agree not to pay policy holders money that is due to them from the company,” Permell said. Permell said policy holders have a contractual agreement with CLICO,

Their assigning rights to government was only as security for government. However, Permell said as CLICO has returned to some degree of stability as seen in its $2.8 billion in assets, “those policies must now be released back to the policyholders and if there is money, then CLICO has to pay the policyholders the difference.” Permell’s group has already been paid $75,000 and the balance in zero interest bonds,

The sum amounted to “a very rough estimate” of 85 percent of the total amount owed, said Permell. They are now seeking to be paid, “all their contractual entitlements.” Permell said he has been a loud critic of former group chairman Duprey in the past, but that, “Mr Duprey has indicated he is sorry. He apologised to policy holders and wants to pay policyholders the balance of money due to them. But he can only do that of course, if he gets back his money...so everything is linked in that sense,” Permell said,

After disappearing from the public eye since the bailout of 2009, Duprey returned in 2015, asking for his majority shares in the regional conglomerate to be returned to him for his “fixing.” “So, if he is telling us that if he gets back his company that he is prepared to make good on the people’s policies, we have an obligation to sit down and hear what he has to say,” Permell said.

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Re: Lawrence Duprey/Clico Thread.
« Reply #187 on: July 23, 2017, 02:49:06 AM »
PAY BACK $2B
Creditors seek to recover debt from CL Financial:
By Asha Javeed (Express).


THE creditors of CL Financial (CLF) are calling in their debt.

First Citizens Investment Services (FCIS) and CLICO Investment Bank (CIB), which is in liquidation, have both written to CLF demanding that their debt which totals about $2 billion be repaid by this week.

The demand letters come after the Government lost its petition to appoint joint provisional liquidators to CLF, claiming it was insolvent and could not repay its debt.

First Citizens Investment Services (FCIS), formerly Caribbean Money Market Brokers (CMMB) which was acquired from CLF for $1, is a subsidiary of banking group First Citizens which is majority owned by the State.

CIB is currently in liquidation by the Deposit Insurance Corporation (DIC).

The Minister of Finance appoints the board of management of the DIC.

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Re: CLICO
« Reply #188 on: September 18, 2020, 04:04:24 PM »
Government now puts CL Financial bailout at $30 Billion
By Kyron Regis (Guardian).


Finance Minister Colm Imbert has revealed that after a decade and multiple assessments, that the government’s bailout of CL Financial and CLICO has cost taxpayers $30 billion.

Speaking at a post Cabinet Media Briefing, Imbert said: “Remember as well that the government, taxpayers by extension, bailed out the CL Financial Group and CLICO, in the tune of billions of dollars - in fact I can tell you now that the final account in terms of indebtedness of CL Financial and CLICO to the state is $30 billion.”

Imbert indicated that it was originally thought that the debt would be approximately $15 billion. He added that when the Ministry went to court with the liquidation “it was $23 billion+ and having done, the final account it is $30 billion.

Imbert said there are many different approaches in the the way in which the debt to taxpayers is being settled .

According to the Finance Minister, one of these approaches is a “set-off”, “in other words you get value for debt”. He gave the example of the golden grove estate in Tobago which was acquired for the Sandals hotel project. Imbert said it was valued, the estate was transferred to the government and then the debt was reduced by the valued amount.

The Finance Minister said that a similar process occurred with CL Marine. While he did not have the exact figure, Imbert disclosed that with regard to CL Marine, the company and it’s assets were valued at ‘a bit over $100 million’.

He said that this acquisition has now reduced the liability of CL Financial/ CLICO Group to the government as result of acquiring that property.

The disclosure of the valuation comes after the Ministry of Finance issued a press release, asserting the fact that CL Marine and its subsidiaries have been acquired by the government, which was part of a court supervised liquidation process.

Based on the liquidation, Imbert said that the government was going through the process of “acquiring strategic assets and netting off/setting off the value of CL Financial Group assets against the debt owed,” thus reducing the debt accordingly.

The Minister insisted that these details were included the recently published press release, but they were not. Hence the reason former Minister in the Ministry of Finance and newly appointed CEO of the Arthur Lok Jack Graduate School Mariano Browne asked: “Where is the report from the Court?”

The Ministry of Finance, in the release, noted that the government has created the National Marine and Maintenance Services Company Limited, a new wholly owned State enterprise for the aforementioned purpose.

Having completed the acquisition, the Finance ministry disclosed that the Government “recently appointed an interim Board of Directors, pending a permanent board, comprised of senior public officials, with an immediate mandate to implement a proper governance structure according to the Companies Act and the State Enterprise Performance Monitoring Manual.”

The Minister of Finance went on to say that the government is quite enthused about this particular acquisition “because we have to diversify away from oil and gas and ship repair, ship building and so on, is a major area of government policy, has been for may many years.”

Imbert emphasized that ship building and ship is also a major area of diversification. He remarked that the government is in the process of acquiring brand new vessels - two fast ferries and two military vessels coming from Australia.

The Finance Minister also reminded the public about the Galleons passage, noting that the facilities of CL Marine and its assets which are housed in Chaguaramas, is intended to repair the aforementioned vessels.

“So it serves a multiple of purposes, it’s part of our diversification effort and it is also a very efficient means of repairing the government vessels,” said Imbert.

As a result of this, the finance minster said he was expecting the government to receive salutations and congratulations for starting the first major diversification project of the government, “rather than being subjected to all sorts of questions about, Why we do that? How you do that? How much you pay for it et cetera?”

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Re: Lawrence Duprey/Clico Thread.
« Reply #189 on: May 01, 2021, 12:49:26 AM »
Montei and Trotman ordered to pay CLICO almost $100M
By Derek Achong (T&T Guardian).


Former Clico Investment Bank (CIB) chairman Andre Monteil and former CIB President Richard Trotman have been ordered to pay almost $100 million in restitution to their former employer over a controversial unsecured loan to Monteil before the bank’s collapse.

Delivering a 129-page judgement, last week, High Court Judge Avason Quinlan-Williams said that both Monteil and Trotman were responsible for the unpaid $78 million loan as they breached their fiduciary duties to the bank in facilitating it, well over a decade ago.

Quinlan-Williams said: “I have found that the first and second defendants (Monteil and Trotman) to lack credibility and in many respects to be untruthful witnesses.”

“I make this statement because those findings were critical in the court’s fact-finding exercise and in coming to the conclusion that the claimant (CIB) has successfully met their burden in proving the case against the defendants,” she added.

In the lawsuit, CIB was claiming that Trotman and Monteil breached their fiduciary duties through the deal which left the bank unpaid and without sufficient security to cover the loan.

The deal consisted of a series of complex financial transactions done between 2007 and 2008.

According to the evidence in the case, Monteil sought and obtained the loan through his company Stone Street Capital in February 2007 to help purchase shares in Home Mortgage Bank (HMB) held by CIB’s parent company CL Financial (CLF).

Shortly after, the debt was transferred to Monteil’s other company First Capital (St Lucia) Limited, which then held his over 300,000 CLF shares, which at the time, were valued at almost $444 million.

CIB was initially to hold Monteil’s new shareholding in HMB as security but when the debt was transferred to First Capital, it was substituted to that company’s CLF shares.

Monteil struck a deal with former CLF executive chairman Lawrence Duprey for him (Duprey) to take control of First Capital’s debt and assets in exchange for the option to purchase CLF’s 43 per cent shareholding in HMB.

Monteil purchased the HMB shares using the loan and other finances for $110 million and then sold them to the National Insurance Board (NIB) for almost the exact purchase price.

CIB filed the lawsuit against the parties after the Central Bank took over control of it and CLF following the Government’s bailout of both organizations in 2009.

Testifying in the trial of the case in 2009, Trotman admitted that CIB officials fabricated documents to make it appear that it was, in fact, Duprey who had initially taken the loan in February 2007.

“It may be faulty legally but this is the way we approached it,” Trotman said, as he admitted that the questionable manoeuvre was a failed attempt by him and his colleagues to ensure that Duprey would guarantee the loan.

In disposing of the case, Quinlan-Williams ruled that CIB was entitled to restitution for the $78 million loan less the a little over $1 million in HMB dividends it received before its hold over it was substituted to First Capital’s CLF shares.

She also stated that CIB was entitled to two and a half percent interest on the money between when the lawsuit was filed in 2011 and her judgement was delivered.

She declared that the transfer of the debt and security substitution was void as they were not done with proper authority and in breach of the duo’s fiduciary duties.

She also ruled that the duo and Stone Street had to account for the assets they hold or held in their possession, which was acquired directly or indirectly from the proceeds of the loan. CIB was also allowed to trace their assets for such information.

With regard to Monteil, Quinlan-Williams noted that he knew that the loan was unauthorised, in oral terms, did not have adequate security and was granted without due diligence from Trotman.

“He knew that this was highly irregular and not in CIB’s best interests yet as Chairman and a Director of CIB, he allowed it to happen, leaving CIB exposed and unsecured,” she said.

She also said he acted dishonestly by not disclosing the true purpose of the transfer and substitution.

“He deliberately misled Mr Trotman and the CIB Board that the transfer of the loan obligations was to another of his companies that would be a Stone Street subsidiary, namely FCL St Kitts,” she said.

Dealing with Trotman, Quinlan-Williams said he breached his fiduciary duty to act with care diligence and skill as a prudent executive would have done in comparable circumstances.

She also noted that he failed in his fiduciary duties of loyalty, honesty and good faith and did not act with the highest standard of professional and ethical competence.

As part of the judgement, Quinlan-Williams ordered Monteil, Trotman and Stone Street to pay CIB’s legal costs for bringing the lawsuit.

She also granted a 60 stay of execution of the judgement.

CIB was represented by Michael Green, QC, Nadine Ratiram, and Keilah Granger.

Jason Mootoo, Christopher Sieuchand, and Shivangelie Ramoutar represented Monteil and his company.

Matthew Gayle represented Trotman.

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Re: Lawrence Duprey/Clico Thread.
« Reply #190 on: December 07, 2022, 11:48:17 AM »
So they pay yet ?

 

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