By Sean Douglas
Friday, December 5 2008
MINISTER of Planning, Dr Emily Gaynor Dick-Forde, said over $40 million was paid in commissions to the agents who arranged financing of the Waterfront Project, replying to a question by UNC Senator Mohammed Faisal Rahman in the Senate on Tuesday.
She said the agents for the borrower, the Port-of-Spain Waterfront Development Limited, were First Caribbean International Bank (collateral agent and financial advisor) and Wells Fargo Bank, North America (trustee).
The agent for the lender, Barclays Capital Limited, was the law firm of Fitzwilliam, Stone, Furness-Smith and Morgan (local counsel).
The fees paid to Barclays were $40.35 million for onward transmission to the various US counter-parties involved in the financing transaction. She said another agent, Chicago Title, had earned US$1.032 million. First Caribbean International Bank had earned fees including TT$1.417 million, US$10,853 , and US$25,000. She said Wells Fargo bank had been paid US$8,100 in trustees fee.
The cost of the Waterfront Project has been previously reported as between $1.5 billion and $2.29 billion.
http://www.newsday.co.tt/politics/0,91185.html
Trinidad is the best resource that the world has to stop the global financial meltdown. After all, all these banks have current problems yet they come into our country and make a killings. Then we talk about belt tightening. Ha Ha Ha. Or is it ho ho ho.
Belt tightening? The government of T-N-T would rather pay an arm and leg for a larger belt! Other than us does anyone else see what is happening? If so, thwn why aren’t they outraged?