00:00Central Bank Governor Larry Hawaii assures that they are engaging with Republic Bank Limited to find a balance between the
00:09bank's earnings and what is passed on to customers.
00:13His comments follow the increase in several fees from Republic Bank Limited, which came into effect on May 1st.
00:20Speaking to the media on Wednesday after the Central Bank National Financial Literacy Program's inaugural Finlet Live 2026 at the
00:30Centre of Excellence McCoy,
00:32Hawaii said Central Bank and Republic Bank Limited are, quote, locked in talks, end quote.
00:39He stated, quote, I'm sure there are ways in which we would be able to find some kind of balance
00:46between their need to ensure that they are properly compensated for the services that they offer and the cost that
00:53is passed on to the consumers, end quote.
00:56Business group heads acknowledge the central bank's involvement and the reasons given by the bank for increasing fees,
01:03but question the equity of the situation, especially after Republic Bank Limited recorded $1.0 billion in profit for the
01:14half-year ended March 31st, 2026.
01:18The financial institution noted that this was an increase of $54 million or 5.4% from $1.01 billion
01:28in the corresponding six months in 2025.
01:32President of the TNT Coalition of Services Industries, TTCSI, Diane Joseph, said, quote,
01:39While we recognize the need for financial institutions to recover digital infrastructure costs,
01:46the timing of these cumulative increase amidst Republic Financial Holdings Limited reporting record profits of $2.2 billion for the
01:56year ending September 30, 2025 raises significant concerns about equity.
02:03She urged the central bank to consider a move beyond monitoring and utilize its role to advocate for a fairer
02:11balance between robust bank earnings
02:13and the financial health for the service sector, SMEs, and citizens.
02:20Confederation of Regional Business Chambers, CRBC, Chairman Vivek Charan echoed Joseph's sentiments, saying,
02:42In that context, consumers and SMEs are entitled to ask why they are being asked to absorb higher routine banking
02:53costs, end quote.
02:54He said the central bank's involvement shows that this matter has, quote,
03:01Clearly moved beyond a private bank-slash-customer issue and has become a wider consumer, SME, and cost-of-living
03:10concern, end quote.
03:12President of the Greater San Fernando Area Chamber of Commerce, Kiran Singh, said,
03:17While he recognizes the importance of maintaining a stable, profitable banking sector,
03:23it is equally critical that financial institutions remain aligned with the reality facing their customers.
03:32Meanwhile, President of the Shibwanesh Chamber of Industry and Commerce, Baudet Mahraj, said,
03:38Following the May 1st fee revisions, the Chamber's SMEs are facing a perfect storm of rising utility, freight, and labor
03:47costs.
03:48He said, quote,
03:50It is increasingly difficult to justify these additional burdens when the banking sector continues to declare annual profits exceeding $1
03:59billion in six months, end quote.
04:02Mahraj believes the rising cost of electronic transactions to be a direct contradiction to TNT's national goal of digital transformation.
04:12He also called on other financial institutions to hold on increasing their fees as well.
04:18Feshana Pargu for TV6 News.
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