Leading private bank considers ‘all possibilities’
TRUE TO ITS PHILOSOPHY OF 'ALL-POSSIBILITIES', BANINTER HAS INVESTED IN ALL SECTORS OF DOMINICAN SOCIETY, FROM AGRICULTURE TO TOURISM, GENERATING PROFITS FOR CLIENTS AND SPURRING DEVELOPMENT

The Dominican commercial banking sector has grown by more than 20% in the six years leading up to 2001, and is expected to report further gains this year as the sector continues consolidating and shoring up its rate of efficiency in step with international requirements.

VIVIAN LUBRANO DE CASTILLO Executive Vice President of Baninter.

The year 2000 saw three huge mergers take place in the sector and the incorporation of two new banks in the system. A year later, it was clear that Banco Intercontinental (Baninter), which is part of the giant Intercontinental Group, had come out on top. Its acquisitions of Banco del Comercio, Banco Exterior and most recently, Banco Osaka, vaulted Baninter into second place among Dominican commercial banks with assets well over the $1 billion mark.
Baninter's move to help save the Banco del Comercio, while the ailing bank was temporarily under central bank administration, was a brilliant strategic move into the private sector, says Vivian Lubrano de Castillo, executive vice president of Baninter.
As regards the acquisition of Banco Osaka: “we saw an opportunity to complete what we believe our bank was lacking at the time,” Ms. Lubrano de Castillo recalls. “Our presence in the private banking sector was not very well developed. So with this takeover we acquired that bank’s portfolio of clients, its strengths in the corporate field, and its experience in handling investments and foreign commercial financing. This gives us the push we needed to gain presence throughout the country, and not just in the metropolitan areas of Santo Domingo and Santiago.”

Baninter's success can be traced to the firm’s so-called ‘all-possibilities’ credo, that is based on making investments that not only generate profits for clients and shareholders, but also serve to spur development throughout the country.
“Baninter is characterized by its open policy of serving each region with a different criteria,” Ms. Lubrano de Castillo explains. “We focus on the socio-economics of each region where we operate, in each town and every area where we open a branch. It’s not just a simple matter of opening a branch, taking in deposits and managing loans like a traditional bank. This is why our ‘all-possibilities’ philosophy is so strongly apparent in the areas where we operate.”

PEOPLE ORIENTED Baninter’s commitment to customer service has been one of the pillars of its success.

This philosophy has led the bank into often risky but also profitable business ventures that ultimately result in clear social benefits at the same time. Its success in these ventures is credited to the bank’s policy of arming itself with the top experts in each field it enters, as well as making sure it maintains a hands-on approach in each project.
“We identify the agricultural regions, for example, and seek out ways to support cooperatives in the sector as well as small, medium and large-sized agricultural entities for projects in the agro-industry. We’ve also gone into areas to provide support to regional infrastructure projects in the telecommunications, tourism and sugar industries to name just a few.”

The success of these ventures have made project financing the bank’s strong point, according to Ms. Lubrano de Castillo, noting that Baninter fully financed a major airport project in the Romana area, because the bank had the
vision to grasp the region’s tourism possibilities and the expertise to turn them into reality.
“Our philosophy is to undertake those projects that benefit the entire population and improve the common good and quality of life of all Dominicans. We are a group that is committed to the development of our country in all aspects; social development, economic development and the development of our country’s greatest resource, its people.”