The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

Commonwealth Bank’s president, Raymond Winder, is stepping down to be replaced by the BISX-listed institution’s chief operating officer, Tribune Business can reveal.

Well-placed sources told this newspaper that the former Deloitte & Touche (Bahamas) managing partner is leaving having reached retirement age and will be succeeded in the post by long-serving Commonwealth Bank executive, Denise Turnquest, who also currently holds the post of senior vice-president.

Mr Winder declined to comment when approached by Tribune Business, saying: “I don’t want to comment on that right now.” This newspaper, though, understands that the bank’s staff have already been informed about the move with the transition likely to occur in weeks as opposed to months.

Mrs Turnquest, who already sits on Commonwealth Bank’s Board, has some 30 years of banking experience and won the Bahamas Financial Services Board Executive of the Year Award in 2015. She has worked in commercial and personal lending, business development, credit risk and delinquency management.

A former Chamber of Commerce president, Mr Winder joined Commonwealth Bank as president, as well as taking a Board seat, after retiring from Deloitte & Touche (Bahamas) on May 31, 2018.

He was then in charge of the firm’s operations and financial advisory services department. Mr Winder has over 38 years’ experience in public accounting, and was a partner for 33 years.

His departure comes after Commonwealth Bank suffered a $23.9m loss for the nine months to end-September 2021 - a near-$50m turnaround from the prior year’s $25.3m profit - due to the timing associated with booking loan loss provisions on delinquent credit. The move is not, though, connected to this.

William Sands, Commonwealth’s executive chairman, in a message to shareholders said: “The primary contributor to the results has been the bank’s loan impairment expense of $74.8m, which when compared to the same period in 2020 reflects an increase of 92 percent.

“While the bank maintains a well-diversified loan portfolio, our customers in good standing that were granted extensions to participate in our loan payment deferral programme have been concentrated in the sectors of the economy most impacted by the pandemic, namely the hotel and leisure sectors.”

He added: “Our regulatory ratios remain very strong. The bank is required to hold a minimum liquidity ratio of 20 percent (the level of liquid assets against possible liquidity risk). As of September 30, 2021, the bank’s liquidity ratio is 59 percent.

“Additionally, regulatory capital adequacy ratios (capital levels to absorb exceptional losses) are set at 17 percent. At over 26 percent, the bank’s capital adequacy ratio is also well in excess of this Central Bank requirement.”