The meeting was organised to update depositors on the verdict handed down by Chief Justice Carl Singh on the liquidation petition by the Bank of Guyana, and to discuss the future of the institution.

The Bank of Guyana had moved to have Globe Trust liquidated after it ran into serious financial difficulties last year. However, the Action Group, which represents the interests of the depositors, moved to the courts to challenge the decision.

The matter came up before Chief Justice Singh, who ruled that the Bank of Guyana does not have the authority under the Financial Act to liquidate and ordered the Bank of Guyana to reorganise GTICL.

At the Thursday evening meeting, Mr. Lorrie Alexander of the Action Group, read out the entire verdict as handed down by the Chief Justice so as to give depositors a clear understanding of what transpired during the legal proceedings.

Following discussions on the matter, a resolution was approved by some 200 depositors present at the meeting that the Action Group should continue representing their interests. There were calls for the Bank of Guyana to address the restitution of monies lost as interest on deposits over the past year.

Depositors also called upon the Bank of Guyana/Government to consider giving a grant to GTICL to return it to sound financial viability.

They supported an earlier appeal by the former Chief Executive Officer Steve Bakker for a loan of $400M to be repaid in two years.

The depositors also requested restitution for the damage to the goodwill of GTICL that was allegedly caused by remarks made by President Bharrat Jagdeo in relation to the functioning of the institution.

Attorney-at-Law, Mr. Basil Williams, who represented the Action Group at the legal proceedings before Chief Justice Singh, said there are two approaches that could be taken in the revitalising of GTICL --reorganisation or amalgamation with investors.

However, depositors adopted the position that the financial institution should be first returned to its original structure before any amalgamation with would-be investors is considered.

Williams also urged that the Bank of Guyana should not be left to unilaterally effect the reorganisation and restructuring of GTICL, but rather it should be carried in consultation and conjunction with depositors, whose interests are being represented by the Action Group. This was supported by the depositors.

GTICL closed its doors on July 17 last year because of bankruptcy, leaving about 2,000 small depositors uncertain about the status of their money.

After the closure, a Bank of Guyana inspection found mismanagement on the part of the Board of Directors, and cited weak loan appraisals, a high level of non-performing loans, and operating losses over the years.