The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

BISX-listed Colina Holdings (Bahamas) and its life insurer subsidiary injected a collective $338,000 into an affiliate bank to finance its acquisition of Finter Bank & Trust (Bahamas), Tribune Business can reveal.

Colina Holdings (Bahamas), and its Colina Insurance Company subsidiary, increased their total investment in Sentinel Bahamas (which trades as Ansbacher (Bahamas) beyond the initial $8 million equity stake, despite their affiliate suffering a $1.055 million loss in 2012.

The details, contained in Colina Holdings (Bahamas) financial statements, reveal: “During 2012, [Colina Holdings] and Colina [Insurance]made additional capital contributions of $124,473 and $213,382 respectively in [Sentinel Bahamas] SBL.

“The funds were used by SBL’s subsidiary, Ansbacher Bahamas, to partially fund the acquisition of Finter Bank and Trust (Bahamas). Colina Holdings and Colina’s percentage ownership in SBL, after the capital contribution, remained at 7 per cent and 12 per cent respectively.”

Those stakes in Sentinel Bahamas were acquired for $3 million and $5 million, respectively, in July 2009, two months after that bank acquired Ansbacher (Bahamas) and the two institutions were merged.

Sentinel Bahamas, though, appears not to have made a profit since the Ansbacher (Bahamas) acquisition.

Despite its revenues remaining flat year-over-year, standing at $7.142 million for 2012 compared to $7.058 million the previous year, Sentinel Bahamas’ total loss more than tripled - increasing from $339,189 to $1.055 million.

As a result, Colina Holdings (Bahamas) share of Sentinel’s loss rose from $64,446 to $146,295. However, due to the acquisition-related capital injection, the BISX-listed insurance holding company saw the value of its Sentinel Bahamas investment rise slightly to $6.504 million, compared to $6.313 million at the 2011 year-end.

As for its other associate investments, Walk-In Holdings - the owner of the three Walk-In Medical Clinics - generated an improved profit of $1.065 million for the year to end-2012, compared to $840,872 the previous year.

As a result, Colina Holdings (Bahamas), which holds a 30 per cent equity interest through PRO Holdings, saw its profit share increase from $252,262 to $319,467.

This is one investment that appears to have paid off for the BISX-listed company, as this is now valued at $4.358 million compared to the $3.402 million initial outlay for that 30 per cent stake.

Elsewhere, Colina Holdings (Bahamas) paid out some $4.572 million in related party transactions during 2012, a more than $500,000 increase over the previous year.

Among the entities likely to have benefited are CFAL; Alexiou, Knowles & Co; the Nassau Guardian; and the Walk-In Clinics, with just $1.616 million going the other way as income, chiefly life and health insurance premiums.

Colina Holdings (Bahamas) had unveiled a 120 per cent net income rise for the 2012 full-year, due largely to a reduction in claims and investor payouts.

It said net profits for the year to end-December 31, 2012, rose year-over year from $5.6 million to $12.3 million.

The company said it had grown its total equity base by 6.9 per cent to $127.9 million, from $119.7 million at the prior year-end. Ordinary shareholders’ equity increased by $6.4 million to $83.7 million, compared to $77.3 million as at December 31, 2012, notwithstanding dividends paid to both equity and Class A Preference shareholders.

Colina Holdings’ gross premium revenues increased by $3 million, totalling $135.1 million for the 12 months compared to $132.1 million in the prior year.

The company’s total assets climbed by $33.2 million to $583.1 million, representing a 6 per cent increase over total assets as at December 31, 2011.

General and administrative expenses represented about 20.9 per cent of total revenues compared to 19.5 per cent in the prior year.