Access Financial Services Limited has announced board and senior management changes at the microfinance company which has an islandwide presence.

Access Financial Services, which is listed on the Jamaica Stock Exchange (JSE), announced that veteran banker, Rex James has retired from the position of chairman and has been replaced by Christopher Williams, effective June 19, 2020. Williams previously served as a non-independent director.

James, who has held the position of chairman since January 2015 retired effective June 19, 2020. During his tenure, James provided strong leadership and direction at Access Financial, resulting in the growth of the company during an important period of its development.

In addition to the retirement of James from the board, Access Financial also announced the departure of Norman Reid, who resigned from the board, effective June 19, 2020. In a statement released to the media earlier this week, Access Financial stated that Reid’s resignation was due to increased personal and corporate obligations on his part.

BON VOYAGE TO MESSERS JAMES AND REID

Reid served the board of Access Financial for the past four years and diligently executed his duties as the chairman of the Audit Committee. The board and staff of Access Financial have expressed their gratitude to James and Reid for their involvement with the microfinance company.

Following their departure, the board has approved the appointment of two new independent directors, effective June 19, 2020. They are Justine Collins, an attorney at law with the law firm, Hart Muirhead Fatta, specialising in commercial and corporate law and Michael Shaw, an experienced banking executive, with local and international experience, who brings a wealth of knowledge in sales management, risk management, and governance practices.

Collins is a member of the Caribbean Blockchain Alliance, the Jamaican Chapter of the Internet Society, the Computer Society of Jamaica, and the Commonwealth Lawyers Association, while Shaw currently serves on the boards of several private and public sector companies.

SENIOR MANAGEMENT CHANGES

In keeping with the strategic focus to strengthen the senior leadership structure of Access Financial, the board announced two senior management changes, effective July 1, 2020. In the first management change, Access Financial founder and chief executive officer, Marcus James, will now assume the position of group chief executive officer.

In his new role, James will have direct responsibility for execution of expansion and acquisition strategies, and extracting synergies across the group’s operations in Jamaica and its wholly owned subsidiary, Embassy Loans Inc, based in Florida, United States of America.

In the second senior management change, Frederick Williams, who joined Access Financial in October 2019 as chief operating officer, has been promoted to general manager. In this role, Williams will be charged with the day-to-day leadership and management of Access Financial with special focus on digital transformation and improved operational efficiencies in serving the needs of customers in the microfinance industry.

Williams is a chartered accountant with extensive experience in accounting, strategic planning, business reengineering, and risk management in the financial services industry. Access Financial offers a wide range of business and personal loans to the microfinance sector.

Access Financial was incorporated in 2000 and was the first company to list on the Junior Market of the JSE in 2009.