The official insertion of the Access Financial Services Limited at the Jamaica Stock Exchange; looking on from left: Brian Goldson, chairman of Access Financial; Don Wehby, GraceKennedy chief operating officer; Marlene Street Forrest, general manager of the Jamaica Stock Exchange; Marcus James, chief executive officer of Access Financial and Sharon Harvey Wilson, finance director of Mayberry Investments Limited.
DON WEHBY APPLAUDES HISTORIC JSE LISTING
Kingston: With the expectation of at least 9 additional listings on the Junior Exchange, Don Wehby urges Jamaican stock brokers to use the Jamaica Stock Exchange as a tool to create opportunities for their clients to make money, even in this challenging financial environment. Speaking at the Access Financial Services Limited listing ceremony this morning at the Jamaica Stock Exchange in downtown Kingston, Wehby, formerly attached to the Ministry of Finance and currently the Group Chief Operating Officer at GraceKennedy, stated, “It is time that brokers become market makers and not order takers.”
Wehby, while serving as Minister without Portfolio in the finance ministry, championed the efforts of Marlene Street Forrest, the general manager of the Stock Exchange to create a junior market for small companies to leverage their equity into capital. “Let me say that it is certainly a pleasure to be here for the listing of Access Financial Services on the JSE Junior Market after having worked on the project during my tenure in government.” Mrs. Street Forrest noted that, “We want to congratulate all who were involved as we recognize that the successful listing of Access Financial Services demonstrates to other companies that accessing this market is a real possibility. Already we sense real enthusiasm from potential listed companies.” Mrs. Street Forrest told the guests at the listing ceremony that while the market was launched in April of this year, the seed only took six months to bear fruit. “Doesn’t it seem appropriate that the first company to access the JSE Junior Market is called Access?”
During the ceremony, Marcus James, chief executive officer of Access Financial stated, “Access offers micro and small business loans and personal loans to a sector ignored by traditional financial institutions because of a belief that the sector was too risky and expensive to service due to the small loan size and high transaction volume. We have however, proven otherwise. Since inception, we have disbursed in excess of $2.3 billion in loans and have been profitable in every year of operation.”
Investors took up the full allotment shares which approximated $100 million. Mr. Wehby noted, “All around the world, the small business sector is a major engine of growth. I believe that the businesses which choose to list on the Exchange will benefit, not only from access to capital, but also from the discipline that goes along with the JSE reporting requirements.” Mr. Wehby in congratulating Mayberry Investments for bringing Access Financial to market noted, “With all that is going on in the financial world, some persons would argue that this is not the right timing for this type of venture. I disagree strongly. Rather, I side with the renowned investor Warren Buffett who says that one should invest when the market is down. Thus even though the world economy has slowed, it is my belief that in times of crisis, there are opportunities. The JSE Junior Stock Exchange represent on such important opportunity for Jamaica.”
