Our Business in Brief

Today, NCB Financial Group Limited (NCBFG) remains resilient as we continue to navigate a historic period of global turmoil, which spared no organisation from the challenges of a lifetime.

Cognisant of the headwinds that remain, we continue undaunted – bolstered by our commitment to our purpose and to the stakeholders we serve. We celebrate the challenges and triumphs that have shaped the organisation throughout its history, with roots dating back 185 years. We salute the passion, dedication and sacrifice of each team member, customer, partner, and shareholder who has been part of the journey. After 185 years of empowering people, unlocking dreams and building communities, we stand unified, confident, and energised to do even more.

As we forge into a future that promises to be dynamic and uncertain, we remain steadfast in pursuit of our aspiration to become a world-class Caribbean financial ecosystem. Throughout our history, we have emerged stronger from crises by actively searching and capitalising on the inherent opportunities present in each crisis. We are committed to playing a pivotal role in the pursuit of economic growth and improved livelihoods for citizens of the region through the products and services we provide; our corporate philanthropy and citizenship; good corporate governance; and by serving as an example of achieving bold aspirations despite challenges and constraints. Facing the challenges of today is the only way to unlock the possibilities of tomorrow. Rest assured, that while the journey may require pivots and detours, our determination is fixed.

Our Business in Brief

Today, NCB Financial Group Limited (NCBFG) remains resilient as we continue to navigate a historic period of global turmoil, which spared no organisation from the challenges of a lifetime.

Chairman's Message

Hon. Michael Lee-Chin, O.J.

Chairman

"In all 185 years of our existence, we have never been as clear about our purpose as we are today. Every single action we take is deliberate and grounded in the prospect of empowering people, unlocking dreams and building communities."

My Fellow Shareholders,

My fellow directors and I have the responsibility of stewarding a portion of your investment portfolio. It is a responsibility we take seriously, and we are grateful for your confidence and the privilege you have bestowed on us. I am proud of NCB Financial Group’s financial performance within the context of continued global challenges. You can be confident that you are investing in a company that is built to last – with leaders expertly navigating the balance of strength and innovation. We are fortifying the institution to withstand shocks while re-imagining and re-engineering our business model for future growth. A well-run organization is focused on long-term viability and sustainable returns.

“If you aren’t willing to own a stock for 10 years, don’t even think about owning it for 10 minutes.” – Warren Buffett

The NCB Financial Group continues to embody key characteristics of my wealth philosophy.

It is a high-quality business.
It is domiciled in strong long-term growth industries.

NCB has evolved from a predominantly Jamaica-based banking group into the NCB Financial Group - a full service regional financial conglomerate, present in over 21 territories. The journey has not been without challenges, as the institution successfully navigated and emerged stronger following local and global financial crises.

In 2022, we also recognised NCB’s 185-year anniversary, with roots dating back to 1837 when the Colonial Bank of London, England established a presence in Jamaica. The journey since that time has included a series of mergers and acquisitions and the emergence from a colonial past into an indigenous institution with world class ambitions. We acknowledge the full history as we pay homage to the customers and employees who contributed along the way. This year, we also celebrated 60 years of independence for Jamaica as well as Trinidad and Tobago – the countries where we currently have our largest presence.

A well-performing financial institution has the unique opportunity to enable wealth creation for its shareholders, its customers and the countries in which it operates. What each NCB Financial Group shareholder owns is a stake in a company committed to building indigenous wealth in all the communities we serve.

For our shareholders, total long-term shareholder returns have been strong. Our investment and mortgage solutions enable our clients to grow their wealth and create a legacy to pass on to

the next generation. Our insurance business enables clients to protect their health and property, which in turn plays a key role in preserving and transferring wealth. For our business customers, our debt, public and private equity solutions, provide the necessary capital for business growth. Owning businesses creates wealth for families and generates economic growth.

Through the launch of Lynk, our digital payments solution, we have laid a strong foundation for enhancing financial inclusion for the unbanked, and putting them on a path for wealth creation.

For the countries in which we operate, we have been a primary taxpayer. For the period October 2021 to August 2022, our tax payments were equivalent to 1.1% of the total tax revenue base of the Government of Jamaica and 0.5% of total tax revenues for the Government of Trinidad and Tobago.

In FY 2022, we collaborated with Factories Corporation of Jamaica on the Morant Bay Urban Centre. We provided debt and equity financing to facilitate this transformational project, which is estimated to provide over 3,000 jobs and revitalise the Morant Bay Community.

Through the foundations across the NCB Financial Group, we have donated over J$2 billion and positively impacted the lives of over 250,000 citizens.

I believe that today we are as clear as we have ever been, in all 185 years of our existence, about our purpose. Every single action we take is deliberate and grounded in the prospect of empowering people, unlocking dreams and building communities. This recent period of social, political, and economic volatility and uncertainty has reshaped and redefined life and business. While it continues to be unsettling for many, it has sharpened our focus and unearthed new opportunities. The ability to find such opportunities amid crisis is a skill we have honed and a mindset we have adopted along our journey. I embrace the present with the knowledge that “In the middle of difficulty, there is opportunity. The bigger the difficulty, the bigger the opportunity.” – Albert Einstein.

With our 2024 aspiration to become a world-class Caribbean financial ecosystem in full focus, I take this opportunity to thank all shareholders and customers for their continued trust and confidence, and each employee for helping to steer the ship to the next destination.

With our continued partnership, I am excited about what is to come.

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President's Message

Hon. Patrick Hylton, OJ, CD, LL.D (Hon)

President and Group Chief Executive Officer

“Our shareholders can rest assured that we are taking full advantage of this moment in history. It is within this context that I affirm that the NCB Financial Group remains focused and committed to its aspiration of becoming a world-class Caribbean financial ecosystem and its purpose of Empowering People. Unlocking Dreams. Building Communities.”

Dear Shareholders, Colleagues, Customers and Partners,

I will start this year’s letter in the same way I closed last year’s letter to you

“These are the times in which a genius would wish to live. It is not in the still calm of life, or the repose of a pacific station, that great characters are formed. The habits of a vigorous mind are formed in contending with difficulties. Great necessities call out great virtues.”– Abigail Adams

Since then, despite a relaxation of pandemic precautions on a global scale, we have seen several challenging developments – among these the Russia-Ukraine conflict, a number of local and global benchmark rate increases to tame inflation, and in July 2022, the World Health Organization classification of monkey pox as a “public health emergency of international concern.” No country or business has been exempt from the leadership challenge of a lifetime due to the economic and social effects of this unusual chain of events.

For many, this has been unsettling. However, I view the time in which we are living as a gamechanger and an opportune time to accelerate positive change. So, what have we been doing with this opportunity?

Innovating and disrupting the status quo
Building new capabilities
Focusing on our people
Strengthening our resilience

Innovating and disrupting the status quo

We introduced Lynk, our digital wallet, in December 2021. There is no need to visit a branch to sign up; it may all be done on a mobile device. Payments to businesses and transfers to individuals are both free and instant. We have been able to expand access to financial services for the unbanked and remove many pain points from the typical banking experience thanks to a regulatory environment created to enable greater financial inclusion and our development of a fintech company. Even though it is still early, it is not surprising that since the launch, more than 170,000 unique customers and more than 4,700 merchants have joined. Additionally, Lynk is the only digital wallet integrated with JAM-DEX, Jamaica’s central bank digital currency.

Using a strategic alliance with an online pharmacy in Trinidad and Tobago, Guardian Life began offering e-pharmacy services to its clients in 2021. Through the use of an integrated platform, our customers have access to a service that links patients and doctors with an online pharmacy, streamlining the prescription filling procedure and providing integrated delivery.

Both of these ideas, would have been considered but not implemented before the pandemic. However, with the urgent need to adapt to the constraints of the new environment, both initiatives were accelerated and implemented, ultimately creating significant value for customers.

Building new capabilities

As a financial group, we have begun to deploy artificial intelligence and machine-learning enabled solutions to enhance our customers’ experiences and drive key business outcomes. At Guardian, we are leveraging artificial intelligence tools to mitigate claims fraud and identify measures to reduce claims costs. At National Commercial Bank Jamaica Limited, our WhatsApp chatbot, Simone, has assisted over 100,000 customers with sales and service transactions since its inception in 2021.

Through the launch of our fintech solution, we have leveraged capabilities such as cloud technology and marketing automation. In addition, we continue to invest in recruiting and developing talent in advanced analytics, software engineering, user experience design and cloud engineering, among other next generation capabilities.

Focusing on our people

In the same way that the pandemic reminded us to stay close to our loved ones, we continue to stay close to our customers and employees. Without our team and our customers, we would be unable to deliver desired returns to our shareholders.

Our focus on organisation health continues, as well as our investments in building the capabilities and supporting the engagement of our team members.

With respect to our customers, we continue to listen and respond to feedback.

At Guardian Group, our One Guardian Digital Platform for customers unifies all our Trinidad and Tobago business product lines delivering an omnichannel experience for our customers across web, phone, walk-in and text messages. Key features include quick quotes, online payments, client portfolio view across insurance and investment products, a health e-card and an artificial intelligence bot built into the platform for real-time customer queries that are connected to our Customer Service for real-time support.

Based on the feedback of several of our stakeholders, we have developed new ways of making banking, investing and overall wealth building easier for our customers and business partners. We launched NCB Assist Biz which is an automated self-managed solution for business customers to submit and track the fulfilment of service requests/ resolution of complaints.

We also launched the NCB Capital Markets Limted (NCBCM) mobile app, NCBCM Wealth Connect, which allows customers to view their portfolio balances, transaction history, and stock market data from the Jamaica Stock Exchange. It also allows them to execute unit trust and equity trades and make transfers between their National Commercial Bank Jamaica Limited (NCBJ) and NCBCM accounts.

All these solutions were guided by customer feedback. To get continuous input from our customers, versus relying exclusively on semiannual surveys, we leverage our WhatsApp chatbot to get feedback from customers on their experiences with us across a number of customer journeys and interactions.

Strengthening resilience

This year, we commemorate a significant milestone for our Group, whose roots date back 185 years to 1837, the year the Colonial Bank of London, England, opened its doors on Harbour Street in Kingston, Jamaica. Throughout this 185- year history, the organisation has overcome many challenges and so our resilience continues to be a strength. But like any muscle, it weakens if you stop working on it and it gets stronger if you continue to work on it and challenge yourself to take on more. We have invested in developing the resilience of our team members and the resilience of our organisation.

We have invested in a series of wellness activities, and skills-based workshops and trainings that equip our employees with relevant skills for the future. We have expanded our leadership development programmes, many of which equip our managers and senior leaders with skills to lead in uncertainty. Our hybrid work model has facilitated operational resilience and greater workforce productivity and flexibility.

As an organisation, NCB Financial Group maintains strong capital positions across its Group companies. The Group’s liquidity positions are robust and supports its resilience to market shocks. In continuance of the strategy to grow liquidity buffers, NCBJ successfully raised US$300 million in August 2022 via a Merchant Voucher Securitisation transaction in the international private placement markets. NCBFG continues to have access to funding in the international markets despite market volatility. The resilience of our Merchant Acquiring and Payments franchises led to the following Fitch rating upgrades in June 2022:

„Merchant Voucher Receivables programme to ‘BBB-’ from ‘BB+’ (Investment Grade) with stable outlook

Diversified Payment Rights programme to ‘BB+’, from ‘BB’ with stable outlook

Our shareholders can rest assured that we are taking full advantage of this moment in history. It is within this context that I affirm that the NCB Financial Group remains focused and committed to its aspiration of becoming a world-class Caribbean financial ecosystem and its purpose of Empowering People. Unlocking Dreams. Building Communities. I am grateful for each team member, customer, supplier, partner and shareholder who continues to be a part of our story and our journey.

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Stories Of Unlocking Dreams

Sandre Malcolm

Managing Director at
Campus Elite & Lynk Small
Business Customer

Sandre, the young Managing Director of the creative marketing and promotions firm Campus Elite is a graduate of the University of the West Indies (Mona) who now hires current students at the university as part of his workforce. His small business no only promotes Lynk, TFOB (2021) Limited's digital wallet but is a Link customer. Sandre pays his young team members - some of whom are unbanked, all of whom have smartphones - with Lynk and is impressed by how they use it, not just to send and receive money, but as a budget management tool.

Gavin Samuels

Head of FIRST Tech
Challenge Jamaica & N.C.B.
Foundation Beneficiary

Gavin’s love of science as a child set him on a path to robotics. Today, he is the head of FIRST Tech Challenge Jamaica which, since the first staging of its National Robotics Championship in 2019, has gone full ‘STEM’ ahead, promoting science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) to young people across Jamaica. FIRST’s mission helps to unlock the potential of Jamaican’s young people and builds the nation’s tech industry. The N.C.B. Foundation is proud to partner with Gavin to power this initiative.

Esther Lyle

Small Farmer in Southfield,
St. Elizabeth, Jamaica &
Guardian Life Limited Client

Esther, principal of a woman-owned farm in Southfield, St. Elizabeth, farms vegetables, eggs, and goats and is known for running a tight ship. A savvy and level-headed business woman, she is devoted to her family and deeply connected to her community. Esther has ambitions of adding agro-processing facilities as part of her plan to scale her business and grow not just produce, but a legacy for family. Esther’s Fisheries and Agriculture Multi-Advantage (FAMA) Plan from Guardian Life helped her when she became ill, and gives her security for the future.

Lesline Aiken

Verification Clerk at National
Commercial Bank Jamaica Limited

Lesline, a deaf team member at National Commercial Bank Jamaica Limited (NCBJ), earned the nickname “Eagle Eye” while working as a Verification Clerk at NCBJ. During a tenure approaching two decades, she has opened the door for other deaf team members and taught her co-workers sign language. Her stellar work ethic and personal and professional stories are daily reminders of the importance of inclusion and how embracing a diverse worforce adss value for companies.

Kevin Ingram

Head – Branch Sales –
Retail Banking & Customer Experience Division at
National Commercial Bank Jamaica Limited

The list of positions Kevin has not held at National Commercial Bank Jamaica Limited (NCBJ) may be shorter than the list of the ones he has. After joining NCBJ with a three-year plan, Kevin built his career in finance, and even met his wife, over his over 30-year tenure at NCBJ. Today, Kevin, aka “Mister NCB,” remains unrelentingly committed to empowering every customer with whom he works – he says it’s why he bounds out of bed every morning.

Chris Faria

Founder and Director of AgraLiving
Institute Bermuda & Corporate Client
of Clarien Bank Limited

Christopher, Corporate Client of Clarien Bank Limited (CBL) and founder and director of social enterprise, AgraLiving Institute Bermuda, works daily to improve food security and provide sustainable farming education to Bermudians. Retailer of seasonal produce, seeds, farm tools, and courses for home growers, AgraLiving is powered by ecommerce solutions from CBL that allow customers across the archipelago to shop and book courses on its website. Christopher’s advice for sustainable gardening is threefold: start small, connect with educational resources, and partner with others. As it turns out, advice for growing a garden is much like growing a financial base.

NCB Financial Group Annual Report 2022

Contents

Our Business in Brief

Our Business in Brief

Our Sub-Groups

Our Purpose

Our Values

Respect

OWNER’SMINDSET

CUSTOMEROBSESSION

TEAMWORK

INNOVATION

BOLDNESS

TRUSTWORTHINESS

Chairman's Message

President's Message

Performance Highlights

$2.08T

Assets

$149.5B

Equity attributable to stockholders of the parent

$319.4B

Gross Revenues

$581.0B

Net Loans

$959.5B

Investment Securities

$715.3B

Customer Deposits

$437.2B

Liabilities under annuity and insurance contracts

$107.3B

Net revenues from banking & investment activities

$42.3B

Net revenue from insurance activities

Revenues & Total Assets By Geographical Segments

Stories Of Unlocking Dreams

Sandre Malcolm

Gavin Samuels

Esther Lyle

Lesline Aiken

Kevin Ingram

Chris Faria

Accusantium Eius Soluta

Consectetur Adipisicing Elit

Beatae Doloribu

Accusantium Eius Soluta

Consectetur Adipisicing Elit

Beatae Doloribu

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