The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

The Nassau Airport Development Company's (NAD) $125m-$130m is due to come to market before year-end 2018, a senior Royal Fidelity executive has revealed.

Jim Wilson, the investment bank's vice-president of corporate finance, confirmed in a press release that the refinancing of the Lynden Pindling International Airport (LPIA) operator's participating debt should begin shortly.

"We have a couple of deals on the go right now, but of course these remain confidential until we are close to going to market," he said. "One of the larger propositions currently with us is a refinancing of some of the debt held by NAD for the airport. We are looking at bringing this to market before the end of the year."

Mr Wilson described his role at RoyalFidelity as "finding companies that may already be suitable as an investment, but also... recognising companies that could be suitable for investment, given the guidance and assistance Royal Fidelity provides".

"I've been in the business for a while," he added. "Developing good contacts is important, but it's about the experience - recognising the opportunities and understanding the nuances of what makes a business or a proposal successful and, hopefully, having developed a good reputation and the trust with the clients who may look to you for guidance and support. My own view and that of the company is I won't raise funds for a company I wouldn't be prepared to invest in myself."

Mr Wilson said that with bank interest rates at all-time lows, the desire for a better return has resulted in some depositors looking beyond savings accounts in favour of investments in local and overseas stocks and bonds.

"We all want more of a return on our savings," said Mr Wilson. "So more and more Bahamians are looking at investing in local and overseas companies through our brokerage platform and Global Invest, our managed service that facilitates investments in international stock exchanges."

When asked if there were more Bahamas-based foreign-owned companies for which Royal Fidelity raises capital, Mr Wilson replied: "No, I don't think so. Our business is Bahamian focused and our capital raising and other corporate finance services are focused on businesses in The Bahamas. There are lots of Bahamians who run very successful businesses.

"What you find is that certain segments tend to be dominated by foreign ownership - such as hospitality and, given the dominance of hospitality in our economy, that gets most of the attention. Some of that is because of the large amount of capital required to start a hotel project, for instance, and also it's a specialised kind of experience required.

"Obviously we have some very talented Bahamians working in the hospitality industries here who've come up under Atlantis and so on, but are they opening their own hotels? Are they moving into that business? If they are, we're certainly not aware of it."

Mr. Wilson said business opportunities existed in the non-hotel tourism sector through AirBnB and vacation rentals. "They're renting a room out. To me, that's a form of business ownership and entrepreneurship in how you're running that," he added.

"I think there are opportunities for bed and breakfasts through the Family Islands and, perhaps, even here in Nassau that tells us there are opportunities for hotel projects that are less than the mega projects costing tens of millions of dollars.

"It is focused, obviously, on the tourist product still, which I know we talk about diversifying away from, but while that is, if you like that tourism goose - that golden goose that we have - I think there are still opportunities there to be had."

Mr Wilson also sees opportunity in tourism activities such as the food, art and historic Nassau tours - all Bahamian-run and owned. "Tourists want the flavour of the Bahamian point of view and the Bahamian view of the country," he added.

Another opportunity, he said, exists in business succession. "As owners of long-time existing businesses begin looking for an exit for whatever reason - age, lack of interest from family members to take over the business, lack of funding for needed growth - we can assist in determining the best options on the way forward," Mr Wilson said.

Calling for more foreign investors to partner with Bahamians, he added: "Having somebody from abroad come in and say they're going to do something, whatever business it may be, may have wonderful and different ideas, but typically they should be partnering with somebody local.

"I don't think that should be forced, though, but I think partnering with somebody local, who understands the local market, who understands how things get done, is an important catalyst and support for any new venture. I do believe there are lots of different businesses - it's only limited by our imagination in terms of what Bahamians can be getting into.

"Obviously, you want to focus on something where you have some experience and some knowledge in what you're doing to do."