DRIVEN by a strong brand, with a customer base of over 500,000 locally across its group of companies, Sagicor figures that in 10 years it should have the third-largest commercial bank in Jamaica.

Sagicor Bank currently has the smallest local commercial banking operation when measured by assets — which was some $18.6 billion at the end of December, according to Bank of Jamaica statistics. National Commercial Bank remains the largest institution, with $272 billion total assets, followed by Scotiabank with $220.9 billion. RBC Royal Bank currently ranks third with $52.2 billion in assets.

The former PanCaribbean Bank became Sagicor Bank Jamaica in December as part of a rebranding exercise which was voted on by shareholders. The changes were made to align the PanCaribbean brand with that of its parent company, Sagicor.

Sagicor Jamaica Group dominates the insurance industry and also has a strong investments arm. Against this background, the firm has targeted the commercial banking operation to be “the next leg of growth”, said Philip Armstrong, managing director of Sagicor Bank.

“Now that we are apart of Sagicor, we are going wider, we have hundreds of thousands of customers and we know them very well,” Armstrong said.

“We believe that we can be a major competitor to the other five banks,” he told journalists at the weekly Jamaica Observer Monday Exchange.

Though Armstrong admits that it’s a lofty goal, considering that the other main players have been in banking for 100 years, he sees no reason his vision won’t work.

“I certainly envision it, and I see no reason we can’t be the third largest bank in the next 10 years,” he said.

Already, Sagicor Bank has five branches and the company is set to add another in the Liguanea area by year-end.

Sagicor’s products are likely to come through efficient means of distribution on the electronic platform, Armstrong said.

The transition into commercial banking was linked to the mark that its investment company, Sagicor Investments, formerly PanCaribbean Financial Services, made in the industry. The ultimate aim is to keep more of the investment company’s businesses, and that has been the approach since 2008.

“Everyday we did so many transactions for customers and most of it went to other commercial banks,” Armstrong said. “So we felt the best interest going forward, from a defensive point of view, is that we really should be in the commercial banking business.”

Originally, Sagicor Bank was a merchant bank, started by the late business tycoon, Maurice Facey and a few other investors.

Today, since the name change, “un-aided awareness” of the bank among the public has jumped from between three and four per cent to nine per cent, revealed the bank’s managing director.

“At present, existing Sagicor customers are moving to the bank and they have been pretty receptive,” said Armstrong, who is also the deputy CEO of Sagicor Investments.

Armstrong added that the third quarter has been excellent, in terms of customer growth and the value of deposits.

The biggest challenge, however, is the natural barrier customers face when switching banks, he said.

According to Armstrong, “There’s a lot to do, and most people just can’t be bothered to go through the hassle.”

Sagicor Bank’s New Kingston Branch Manager, Tamara Waul-Douglas said that the amount of paperwork that is needed in the transition is huge, as such, Sagicor Bank offers convenience and tries to take the load off customers.

“So what we do, as a bank, on both the banking and investment side is that we try to pre-fill the forms as best as possible with the information that you give us,” she said.

The bank has a business unit, which is geared towards attracting more of the corporate customers and is giving them the kind of service they are not getting with the bigger banks, she added.

With growth comes the possibility of affecting the personalised service that the bank gives. But Armstrong seems prepared.

“It’s a concern, for banking in general… not only in Jamaica, but in North America, people in general don’t trust banks,” he said. “I think if we find a way to nurture our customers, it will provide us with a bigger platform to acquire more and more customers.”

Those are some issues that will present opportunities for Sagicor and make the bank provide the platform to attract customers.

Sagicor is expected to increase user fees in May, but Waul-Douglas noted that for the last five years, Sagicor has ensured that it has the fewest and lowest in the market.

“Even when we make our adjustments this month (May), it’s still lower than what you find at the other banks; that can be tested and proven,” she said.