NASSAU, The Bahamas – The Bahamas Financial Services Board honoured individuals for their commitment to improving the industry as a whole. The honourees were recognised at the 10th Annual Industry Excellence Awards Dinner & Presentation Ceremony held Friday, October 22, 2010 at the Sheraton Nassau Beach Resort.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Immigration the Hon Brent Symonette, in his address said that the government remains committed to strengthening and improving the Financial Services Sector.
“We are happy to have this opportunity to be a part of this imitative that profiles persons who have excelled and whose contributions have been recognised by their peers who nominated them.
“We recognise that these are just some of the many dedicated individuals who work every day to ensure that we remain a premium financial services centre,” he said.
The categories were: Executive of the Year; Professional of the Year; Achiever of the Year; and Student of the Year. John Lawrence, chairman of the Windermere Corporate Management Limited was named Executive of the Year; Veronica Moncur-Sherman, UBS Trustees (Bahamas) Ltd., named Professional of the Year; Dominique Glinton, of Glinton Sweeting O’Brien named Achiever of the Year; and Edmund Bain, customer care officer at FirstCaribbean International Bank, named Student of the Year.
The BFSB selected Pamela Klonaris for its 2010 Development & Promotion Award in recognition of the SMART Fund 006 Model. A special award was given to Eve Poitier for mentorship. Members of the Working Group/Nominations Committee for the 2010 Industry Excellence Awards reviewed the nominations.
The government echoes the BFSB’s belief that the sustainability of the financial services industry has been made possible through the dedicated professionals who comprise the sector, as BFSB maintains in its promotional presentations – “Commitment, Continuity, and Consistency”, Mr. Symonette said.
“These are the watchwords for The Bahamas financial services industry. And the descriptor is made possible only because of the real people power in The Bahamas, notably within financial services,” he added.
Mr. Symonette said continuing focus must be given to the acquisition of expertise required for performing with excellence in the global financial services arena.
“The government of The Bahamas remains committed to the strengthening of this sector, fully acknowledging the importance it plays to the economic well-being of our nation. Our collaboration on the vision and long-term strategy for the sector speaks to this.”
The Bahamas Financial Services Board was established as a joint public-private enterprise in April 1998 to promote a greater awareness of the country’s strengths as an international financial centre.
By Lindsay Thompson
Bahamas Information Services
