ABN Sells Part of Caribbean Wealth Management Business

Stephen Harris

24 November 2005

ABN Amro is selling its banking and asset management operations in the Caribbean island of Curacao, Netherlands Antilles, to First Caribbean International Bank. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. The ABN Amro’s Curacao businesses, which include the current ABN Curacao branch operations and the ABN Curacao asset management business, are the largest international banking operations in Curacao. It provides a range of wealth management and banking services to international private and corporate clients and to the trust and fund services industry. The asset management business has around $600 million of assets under management. “Being a part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Curacao offers a ‘safe haven’ proposition in general, and in particular, due to its geographic location, to Latin American corporate and private clients,” said Charles Pink, chief executive of First Caribbean, in a statement. The Dutch bank said in a statement: "ABN AMRO's decision to sell the activities follow its strategy which has a different focus. The Curacao businesses, which are focused on the trust and offshore private client segment, will be a better fit with a dedicated and specialised financial services provider focused on international banking in the region."