b2b magazine vol8 no.1
DESCRIPTION
B2B of GibraltarTRANSCRIPT
IN THIS ISSUE:IN THIS ISSUE:
Chess: Moves GibraltarChess: Moves Gibraltar
Powering the EconomyPowering the Economy
Trading Conditions SurveyTrading Conditions Survey
Volu
me
8 N
º 1
The Quarterly Magazine of the Chamber of Commerce
3
Foreword
Powering the Economy
The recent total power failure which was due, it was reported, to a fault in the distribution system, served to
remind Members of the difficulties suffered by virtually all businesses in Gibraltar. It highlighted just how exposed we all are to such a systemic failure in our overstressed infrastructure. As we all know, power failures are not an uncommon occurrence in Gibraltar, but not of this magnitude.
The Government has plans to construct a new power station at Lathbury, together with associated upgrades to the infrastructure, at an estimated cost (to the taxpayer) of some £100 million. You will have read in the press recently how this project has been facing difficulties over planning and environmental issues, as well as, apparently, some technical challenges with what is a complex site for the purpose. While these issues remain to be played out, should we not question the magnitude of this proposed expenditure especially on outdated technology?
Gibraltar, for a variety of reasons involving security and connected issues, has always insisted on generating its own electricity. For what is essentially a town of 30,000 people, this is a huge cost burden on the economy, funded by electricity tariffs for both domestic and business users, as well as a Government subsidy. In other words, a very costly business altogether.
When this expenditure is added to other recent commitments on major capital projects such as the airport terminal, new frontier approach road and tunnel, the works to Devil’s Tower Road and others, most would agree that Gibraltar is entering into an unprecedented level of publicly funded capital projects at a time when the overall economic scenario remains uncertain. In Gibraltar, several major private sector projects are on hold until a better economic climate prevails. Outside our borders, the major concern is a rising worry about sovereign risk across the Eurozone, reflected in the capital markets by plunging stock exchanges and rising yields on government bonds.
Against this backdrop, should we not look at alternatives for our power generation? In these days of pan European markets in energy supplies, could we not plug in to the European ‘grid’ and contract with some European Electricity Authority / Energy Company for the supply of power? Is the price of ‘independence’ on energy terms worth paying, now and for many years to come, particularly in an era when cross border energy supply is a common occurrence? If we were to ‘plug in’, then we could channel resources into upgrading Gibraltar’s power delivery system, allowing us the benefit of a relatively cheap and reliable power supply. Existing plants could be upgraded and kept as back up in the event of any cuts in supply. No country or system is immune from power failures.
This simple analysis should serve to start a debate on this fundamental issue, a debate that needs to be had before we plunge Gibraltar into further and significant debt in the face of an uncertain future. Surely there are lessons to be learnt from the huge public debt issues affecting many countries across the globe?
The Royal Bank of Scotland International Limited trading as NatWest (NatWest). Registered Office: P.O. Box 64, Royal Bank House, 71 Bath Street, St. Helier, Jersey JE4 8PJ. Regulated by the Jersey Financial Services Commission. Business address: PO Box 11, 16 Library Place, St Helier, Jersey, JE4 8NH. NatWest is the registered business name of The Royal Bank of Scotland International Limited under the Business Names Registration Act. Gibraltar business address: National Westminster House, PO Box 707, 57 Line Wall Road, Gibraltar. Regulated and authorised by the Financial Services Commission, Gibraltar to undertake Banking and Investment Business from 57 and 55 Line Wall Road and 1 Corral Road, Gibraltar. Our services are not offered to any person in any jurisdiction where their advertisement, offer or sale is restricted or prohibited by law or regulation or where we are not appropriately licensed. NatWest is a member of the Gibraltar Deposit Guarantee Scheme as set out in the Deposit Guarantee Scheme Act 1997 and Deposit Guarantee Scheme (Amendment) Act 2009. Calls may be recorded. Internet e-mails are not necessarily secure as information might be intercepted, lost or destroyed. Please do not e-mail any account or other confidential information.
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Contents
In this issue
FOREWORD
page 3 Powering the Economy
NEWS FEATURES
page 7 Chess moves push Gibraltar into the limelight
page 10 Airlines – optimism for 2011 and beyond
page 13 2010 Trading Conditions Survey
page 17 New tax legislation nears completion
CHAMBER NEWS
page 19 Gibraltar’s Young Enterprise winners triumphant in the UK
page 20 New ASYCUDA system a boon for traders
page 21 Summer 2010: Air Timetable
page 22 MidTown: Chamber members express concern
BUSINESS BRIEFS
page 23 Commercial Real Estate
page 24 New Current Account from local Building Society
page 25 Gibtelecom achieves EFQM accreditation
page 25 Gibraltar signs tax exchange information agreement with Netherlands
page 27 Local bank sponsors winning Ferrari
page 27 Power outage – how did it affect you?
PEOPLE ON THE MOVE
page 29 A new look Lord Nelson
page 29 Local returns to strengthen NatWest’s Treasury & Investor team
page 30 Ian Victor heads up Lombard
page 30 Taxi Association take the shield in NatWest’s inaugural Paddle Tennis Tournament
HOW CRASS IS THAT? WHERE RED TAPE MAKES NO SENSE AT ALL
page 31 How much trouble a humble can of meat can cause
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Front Cover Photo:
Boris Spassky, tenth World Chess
Champion. He held the title from 1969
to 1972, when he was defeated by the
American Robert (Bobby) James Fischer,
in the so-called ‘Match of the Century’,
in Reykjavik, Iceland. With Boris is Brian
Callaghan, organiser of the Gibraltar
Chess Festival, now in its ninth year.
B2B is published by Copywrite Publishing
for the Gibraltar Chamber of Commerce
four times per annum. No part of this
publication may be reproduced without
the permission of the Gibraltar Chamber
of Commerce or the publishers.
7
News Features
Chess moves push Gibraltar into the limelight
ON his desk in an office in the Caleta Hotel, Brian Callaghan, the
hotel’s proprietor, keeps several thick piles of press cuttings from newspapers around the world. There are stories in English, Spanish and Arabic, snipped from newspapers and magazines or printed off the web. They have a common theme: Gibraltar, and chess.
For two weeks every year, the Rock becomes the focal point of the professional and amateur chess world. In less than a decade, the Gibraltar International Chess Festival, the brainchild of Mr Callaghan, has become a regular fixture on the global chess calendar, attracting players from five continents. Chess legend Boris Spassky dropped in for a private visit at the last edition, as did Magnus Carlsen, currently the world’s number one. In chess terms, this is now a major global brand. At the last event some 350 players from 51 countries travelled to Gibraltar to participate. There were keen amateurs, aspiring professionals and world champions in their ranks. For chess journalists everywhere, the competition offered rich pickings in terms of copy. For Gibraltar, it
meant positive coverage of the sort PR gurus can only dream of.
Take this example. Traditionally, chess tournaments are dominated by male players. Women have often found it hard to break in and compete on a par with men. But that’s not the case at the Gibraltar Open, which last time attracted five of the top ten women players in the world, among many others. “There’s absolutely no doubt that, outside the women’s world championship, we’re the most important women’s chess event in the world,” Mr Callaghan said. “There’s a higher ratio of women who come to our tournament than to any other. They feel really comfortable here and I think they’re good for the tournament.” And it’s not just Mr Callaghan who thinks this. Leading chess journalists have noticed too. Here’s what the correspondent for the International Herald Tribune, one of the world’s leading global newspapers, had to say: “It was one
of the strongest tournament showings by women ever. The results in Gibraltar may be the start of a trend.”
Mr Callaghan projects a tsunami of enthusiasm for the sport and for his event. Having worked hard to consolidate the competition and achieve its present critical mass, he believes the chess open offers a blueprint for the future of Gibraltar tourism, one led by international events of this nature. “We feel that this is a specific niche in the market which should be targeted with vigour,” he told B2B. “Gibraltar is not, on the whole, big enough for beach holidays because, frankly, if you look at our beaches, we can’t compete. One hopes for the future, but at the moment we’re not there.” As an alternative to the package holiday, event tourism is as attractive as it gets.
To trace the origins of the Gibraltar chess tournament you need to go back to Mr Callaghan’s childhood. “My wonderful but very radical mother sent me to a school where you didn’t actually have to learn any lessons,” he said. “One of the things that I learnt to do rather badly was play chess.” As often happens, he played for many years, then drifted away from the game only to pick it up again as an adult, playing weekly games as a break from running his hotel and tourism
business. Then one day, his hobby and his business overlapped. “I had a hotel with empty beds, and I knew that chess is played indoors and is a perfectly good winter season activity,” Mr Callaghan said. “It seemed perfectly suited for Gibraltar as a piece of event tourism, which I consider to be the future of tourism in Gibraltar.”
Back in 2000, Mr Callaghan and Franco Ostuni, the general manager of the Caleta Hotel, began to nurture the idea and explore ways of bringing it to fruition. As a first step, they went to see the competition and visited the largest chess festival in the UK, which takes place in Hastings. “We came away from there thinking that we could do very much better,” Mr Callaghan said. “Often these tournaments take place in gymnasiums, big halls, conference centres, and people go to play. But when they finish playing, they just leave.” Therein lay the opportunity. Setting up a world-class competitive event and blending it with social events. “One of the things that Gibraltar is famous for is its
Michael Adams,
British No. 1,
winner of the 2010
Gibraltar Masters,
returns in 2011
to defend his title.
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9
News Features
hospitality and the way it welcomes people from outside,” he added. “What we felt we had to build was a social aspect to this, so that people didn’t just come to play but rather came to enter into the spirit of the festival. I think that we’ve majored in that.”
The next step was finding the funding and expertise to put the event together. Even before this, there had been early lessons. Prior to setting up the chess event, Mr Callaghan and his team had tried their hand at organising bridge and backgammon gatherings, but they didn’t work. To this day he’s not sure why, though he has an inkling. “Perhaps it was because we didn’t get inside it enough,” he said. “Now, with chess, we’re totally inside world events. We know exactly what’s going on, we know who the players are and I think it’s the amount of commitment that you make to these types of event, and the work that you put in to get to know the people, that make them work.”
Gibraltar’s chess festival is a true open tournament which means that, in the
opening rounds at least, the weakest players can end up playing the best players. That provides a steep learning curve and incredible opportunities for aspiring players. Mr Callaghan did not hesitate to concede that he didn’t have the technical knowledge to make the tournament work from the outset. “I had the spirit and the will and the drive and the commitment, but not the technical knowledge,” he said. So he brought in chess professional Stewart Reuben, who for seven years led the secretariat as tournament director and was instrumental in establishing a top-notch format that is attractive to both established professionals and to players working their way up in the chess hierarchy. “We’re gathering momentum and reputation around the world every time,” Mr Callaghan said.
Critical to the success of the event was the backing and commitment of its many sponsors, both in terms of funding and less obvious behind-the-scenes support. Sponsorship of the tournament is led by the private sector, though the Gibraltar Government provides vital financial support that has enabled the event to grow. Mr Callaghan said a turning point in the evolution of the Gibraltar open was reached when the government and sponsors committed to a three-year funding package. This offers an important lesson for future events. “When you’re running this sort of thing, you need to know that you’re there for a period of time,” he said. “That enables you to concentrate on obtaining the benefits of a world event, as opposed to having to run around trying to get the money every year. If you’ve got the passion to take these things forward, then you need to know that you can plan medium term and not have to go with a begging bowl every year to get the money. I don’t think you can get into these things unless you’re able to talk to organisers and say you’re here for at least three years.”
Although the government backing was essential to getting the tournament to where it is today, it’s the private sector that really drives it forward. From the outset the main sponsor was Gibtelecom – which offered other advantages too, not least in terms of technical support – but there are many others. During the interview Mr Callaghan asked B2B to print all their names in this article, but there are so many that do so would prove grammatically cumbersome. Suffice it to underscore the sentiment with a quote: “I can’t stress enough the support that we get from our sponsors,” he said. “They are integral to making it work.” As from the next edition of the tournament, the
main sponsor will be local insurers Tradewise Insurance. “You know, chess and the financial world, they work well together,” Mr Callaghan said. “It’s a nice image. I think they’re great partners.”
Surprisingly perhaps, the figures involved in running an event like this are not that huge, particularly given the benefits to the Rock. The current budget for the tournament is about £210,000, of which £125,000 will be paid out in prizes. As for the offshoots for Gibraltar, consider these facts: during the last tournament, hotels in Gibraltar provided 5,000 room nights across the sector. Most of the players like to stay at the Caleta because they want to be where the event is being held, but inevitably many spill over to other hotels both in Gibraltar and Spain. “The numbers produced in that 12-day period are as much as two of Gibraltar’s largest tour operators in a year,” Mr Callaghan said. “It’s a substantial contribution.” And that’s just the hotel sector. With 350 people in Gibraltar for a week, the knock-on benefits for other sectors are obvious, if not so easily quantified.
So what now for chess in Gibraltar? What of the future? The open tournament is now well established and planning for the next edition is well under way. But Mr Callaghan and his team have, to coin a phrase, another queen up their sleeve. For a clue, look to Gibraltar’s schools. One offshoot of the tournament was a surge in interest in chess from youngsters. As a side activity, the sponsors of the tournament also backed a push to teach chess to youngsters and encourage an interest in chess from an early age through chess groups and lessons. Such has been the response that a new event has been born. Next summer, Mr Callaghan and his team plan to host the first junior international open tournament for under 16s and under 12s with assistance from the Calpe Chess Club. He is confident that the tournamentwill rapidly gain traction in the chess world, thanks to the success of the Gibraltar Open. He also believes it will help foster cross-border, cross-regional participation. His confidence in the idea is infectious, as is his belief in what is being achieved. “Whenever you see Gibraltar in the newspapers, it’s something contentious,” he said. “It’s because of some incursion by a Guardia Civil boat, or because something has happened at the frontier. The great thing about chess is that we are projecting Gibraltar around the world in a non-contentious manner. And I think that is important.”
We couldn’t agree more.
Chess moves push Gibraltar into the limelight – continued
LO_GibraltarE100202Indep210x297.indd 1 4.2.2010 14:58:21
10
News Features
Airlines – optimism for 2011 and beyond
In April last year, amid much publicity and fanfare, start-up
Spanish airline Ándalus Líneas Aéreas began flying between Madrid and Gibraltar. It was a service hailed at the time as opening a world of opportunity for the Rock, with the promise of new routes to follow thereafter. But by April this year, the airline was tangled in financial strife and the Madrid route cancelled. The demise of Ándalus offers a cautionary tale that underscores the challenge of sustaining air links outside the traditional London routes.
Ándalus stepped into the Madrid-Gibraltar air bridge after two airline majors had tried and pulled out. Both Iberia and GB Airways had served the route, but had found that passenger volumes did not justify the costs of the service, particularly at a time when the economic crisis and rising fuel prices was crippling the industry elsewhere.
Enter Ándalus with a different business model: where Iberia and British Airways had operated large passenger jets, the start-up airline – it operated just one other service at the time – was opting for a 50-seat plane. The idea was that a smaller capacity would result in higher passenger yields on a low-volume route.
The problem was that no one anticipated just how low those volumes would be. According to the 2009 Air Traffic Survey published by the Gibraltar Government, load factors on flights to Spain averaged a paltry 41.5% during the year. At times, services were pulled altogether because no one was booked to fly. The company tweaked its schedules and pricing, with flights aimed at enabling businessmen from the area to fly to Madrid and back in one day. Still however, the numbers were low.
Undeterred, Ándalus responded by launching a service between Gibraltar and Barcelona in July last year. But it was a short-lived exercise. By September, less than three months after they began, Ándalus pulled the Barcelona flights. Carlos Pereira, the company’s chief operating officer, summed up the situation when he said at the time that the airline had “no interest in flying with an empty plane.” The Madrid schedule was also cut back, with the airline complaining – unfairly, according to the Gibraltar Government – that the promised help to promote the routes had not materialised.
Behind the scenes, the problems facing Ándalus were far deeper than simply low passenger volumes. In March this year, reports emerged that the company had allegedly built up un-paid debts running into hundreds of thousands of pounds. An Ireland-based aircraft leasing and financing company called GE Capital Aviation Services called in the lawyers and moved in. By April, Ándalus had announced that all flights between Gibraltar and Madrid were indefinitely suspended.
AIRPORT
After months defying an increasingly gloomy scenario, the abrupt collapse of the latest attempt at a Madrid-Gibraltar air bridge inevitably raised questions about one of the Gibraltar Government’s flagship capital
projects, the construction of a new air terminal at a cost of £50m to the public purse.
In a series of statements to the local media, the GSLP/Liberals challenged the sense in spending such a huge amount on a terminal that, in their view, reflected the failure of the government’s aviation policy.
“The airline [Ándalus] has pointed to the poor load factors and the low demand that existed for the route to Madrid,” an Opposition spokesman said at the time. “This confirms the analysis of the Opposition that there was little or no market research
conducted by the Government on the demand that existed in this part of the world for flights between Gibraltar and Spain.
This should have been done before the decision was taken to embark on the costly air terminal project”.
The government’s aviation policy, the GSLP/Liberals said, was driven by party political
interests and lay “in tatters”. Instead of investing £50m, the government should have opted for a more modest terminal.
The analysis drew a sharp rebuke from the Gibraltar Government. In a statement, No.6 Convent Place poked fun at the Opposition and said it remained “delighted to take full political responsibility for the excellent, correctly-sized, well-located and much-needed new air terminal project”.
The new air terminal
is an investment in
Gibraltar’s future,
to satisfy Gibraltar’s
present and
future needs and
opportunities
11
News Features
The government said it was not responsible for the financial woes of foreign airlines and insisted that the terminal was a long-term project that had to be seen against the background of opportunities for air links under the terms of the Cordoba agreement, which allowed for ‘expanded use’ of the airport and the potential for flights from Gibraltar to destinations across Europe.
“The new air terminal is an investment in Gibraltar’s future, to satisfy Gibraltar’s present and future needs and opportunities, and to exploit our Europe-wide and international opportunities, the possibility of which the Cordoba Agreement delivered at a political level,” the government said at the time.
LOOKING AHEAD
As it ploughs ahead with the construction of the air terminal, the Gibraltar Government is engaged in a parallel exercise to drum up business.
Last May, transport minister Joe Holliday participated in the Routes Forum in Toulouse, accompanied by Chris Purkiss, the director of Civil Aviation, and Nicky Guerrero, chief executive of the Gibraltar Tourist Board.
The event was a major air conference that brought together airlines and airports to discuss new route proposals. The delegation met with both airline representatives and airport managers to explore possibilities for new business.“The airline industry is currently experiencing difficulties as a result of the prevailing economic conditions worldwide,” Mr Holliday said.“However there is optimism that 2011, the year in which the new air terminal commences operations, will result in improved performance.”
One airline already known to have shown an interest in Gibraltar is Air Europa, which is linked to the Halcon Viajes and Globalia tourism group.
For the Opposition, however, the message was “propaganda” to justify the expense of the air terminal.
“The Government’s decision to attend the Routes Europe Forum conference in France in a bid to attract new airlines is a reflection of their desperation to bring in different players in order to justify the enormous cost of the new air terminal building,” said Dr Joseph Garcia, the Opposition’s spokesman for civil aviation matters.
“It is a fact that over many years, despite the propaganda, they have failed to attract new airlines and open new sustainable routes from Gibraltar airport.”
Dr Garcia said that while the government continued with its delusions of grandeur, air arrivals from the UK were static in 2008 compared to 2009, and dropped by 4000 in January and February this year.
“This is the harsh reality behind the propaganda,” he said.
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News Features
2010 Trading Conditions Survey
Highlights
• Two thirds of this year’s respondents had seen their year on year sales either flat or reduced.
• Respondents said that 40% of their employees were frontier workers.• 39% responded saying that banks were less willing to lend
compared to the previous twelve months.• 13% of respondents had made people redundant during the year.
Collectively the number of people who had lost their jobs amounted to 39 people. 15% of respondents thought it likely that they would be making further redundancies during 2010 although more optimistically 65% of respondents had no plans for job losses during the year.
• High business costs and competition from Spain have the biggest impact on local businesses.
• Members returning completed questionnaires employed more than 1,761 people or just over 11% of the private sector workforce in Gibraltar.
• 32% response rate (87 completed questionnaires returned).
Employment levels
Members returning completed questionnaires employed more than 1,761 people or just over 11% of the private sector workforce in Gibraltar. Of this total, 572 (40%) were frontier workers.
One third of respondents said that they had increased the number of employees in the previous twelve months, whilst just over a fifth (22%) said that they had reduced their workforce during the same period.
Business Performance
Around one third of those responding (30%) said that they had seen an increase in sales compared with the previous year. This is down on last year’s survey where half of respondents reported a year on year increase. Just over one fifth of respondents (22%) said that they had seen a fall in sales which is an improvement on last year’s survey where one third had seen their sales fall year on year. The remaining half (48%) said that their sales had been flat compared with the previous year.
Taken together, two thirds of this year’s respondents had seen their year on year sales either flat or reduced. This gives cause for concern and is perhaps indicative that, as happened in the early 1990s, Gibraltar is starting to feel the chill winds of the economic downturn some 18 to 24 months later than elsewhere.
Asked what impact the global recession had had on their business during the previous twelve months, two thirds (64%) replied that it had had a negative effect. This is an increase from 54% last year reflecting a more pessimistic outlook in the short to medium term. A further 7% said the recession had had a very negative impact. A quarter said that it had not had any impact. This was a fall from last year’s 37% who had seen no impact from the recession. A mere 3% said that it had had a positive impact.
Last year we commented that it was still relatively early in the downturn and if the 1990s recession was any guidance, Gibraltar was likely to feel the effects of the downturn elsewhere two years or so after it had hit the UK and Spain. These responses seem to bear this out.
Business Outlook
Despite this, the majority of respondents (41%) remained optimistic about future business prospects for the rest of the year and in particular (59%) for 2011.
There is however, some concern about the prospects for this year as 29% of those responding expect the outlook to deteriorate in the year ahead, although this reduces to just 11% for 2011. Most respondents predicting a worsening outlook are from the retail and wholesale sectors. The two sectors which are most upbeat about the future outlook are the Finance and the Port & Shipping sectors.
Retail sector Expect lower wages as customers hurt by credit crunch.
Spain’s recession and uncertainty over local construction industry may make things worse.
Lack of feel good factor. Strong euro does not help.
Adversely affected by traffic and road works on Winston Churchill Ave.
Slow but steady growth due to improved products.
Downturn will squeeze sales and margins.
Wholesale sector Tougher year with more competition and more red tape.
Provided ship calls continue to increase, business will increase.
Q4 sales of 2009 are down as are Q1 sales for 2010.
Insurance sector Insurance market is very soft with low rates. This should improve in the next year.
Client numbers growing but margins being squeezed by rise in costs and increase in competition.
Banking sector Increase in confidence among our clients. We expect this to continue.
Progressive expansion of financial services.
Other Finance General slowdown resulting from global recession.
Property & Construction Property development has stagnated.
See a gradual improvement to the market. Commercial sales are improving, and expect to start new projects in 2010.
Tricky due to political uncertainty and strength of recovery.
2010 will be difficult as outlook uncertain.
Port & Shipping sector Too many unlicensed operators.
15
News Features
Issues affecting business
As with last year, the increase in business costs was deemed to have the greatest impact on respondents’ business affecting 29% of them, around the same rate as last year. Competition from other local traders as well as from outside Gibraltar was the next issue likely to affect members’ businesses.
Other factors affecting members’ businesses which are worthy of note are wildly fluctuating exchange rates; banks restricting their lending; irregular frontier flows; and the general economic slowdown.
More specifically, we asked members what the impact of sterling’s devaluation against the euro and other currencies had been over the year. This is an important question as everything sold in Gibraltar is imported, mainly from the UK or Spain. One fifth (22%) said that sterling’s devaluation had had a positive impact; 38% said it had had a negative impact but 40% said it had had no impact on their business whatsoever. Those companies who had benefited had seen their sales increase significantly as more people were coming to Gibraltar to buy goods. What some traders lost out by sourcing goods in euros they made up from increased turnover.
ISSUES LIKELY TO AFFECT BUSINESS % of
respondents
Staff recruitment and retention 11
Training staff 3
Increased business costs 29
Competition from other traders in Gibraltar 14
Competition from Spain 8
Competition from elsewhere (UK, Europe, internet) 12
Health & Safety regulations 0
Increased Government red tape 8
Dealing with Government departments 10
Traffic congestion 5
Impact of lower corporation tax
When asked about the impact of the lower corporation tax rate anticipated in 2011, two thirds (67%) responded that it would have a positive impact on their business. Nearly one quarter (23%) said it would have no impact and for some reason 10% thought it would have a negative impact on their business, although it is not clear why they thought this.
A number of respondents gave a positive reply on the condition that additional costs or taxes would not be introduced to offset any forecast reduction in tax receipts.
Banking costs
Last year we asked members about their banks’ willingness to lend. 39% of respondents said that they had found their bank less willing to lend compared to the previous year, but in contrast more than half of respondents (58%) said that there had been no change in their banks’ willingness to lend compared with twelve months earlier.
COMMENTS ON BANKING COSTS
Retail sector They move goal posts unilaterally, making life difficult.
Banks not willing to lend, asking for large deposits making it hard to run a business successfully.
More expensive, higher fees, slower decision-making and more collateral required.
Presently in discussions. No decisions yet.
Legal Sector Time taken to sanction decisions has increased dramatically.
Other Financial Lending criteria not relevant to Gibraltar but set from HQ elsewhere.
Property & Construction Decisions take longer, and are made outside Gibraltar.
Banks created the recession and now only want to look after their interests.
Transport & Shipping Banks are reluctant to lend or give overdrafts.
Other No borrowings. Better to stay liquid.
Poor interest rates, find it hard to invest surplus funds.
Banks reluctant to commit to long term financing.
Knock on effects of business failures
There have been a number of high profile business collapses in the last twelve months or so which have left a trail of unpaid bills to employees, suppliers and the Government. The Chamber wanted to get an idea of what proportion of its members had been affected by these failures.
One third of respondents (34%) said that they had been affected. Only one fifth (18%) said that they had not been affected and a cautious 48% said that they weren’t sure. Perhaps they’re waiting to see, but what seems certain is that either directly or indirectly, very few businesses in Gibraltar will escape entirely unscathed from these collapses.
Surveys & Reports
The survey asked members for their views on the Economic Impact Study which had been commissioned by the Chamber and published last autumn and in particular whether members thought similar or supplementary studies should be conducted by the Chamber. More than three quarters (78%) of the respondents were fully supportive and 16% were undecided.
2010 Trading Conditions Survey – continued
17
News Features
New tax legislation nears completion
The Gibraltar Government has published the long-awaited text of
a new tax regime designed to ensure the continued international competitiveness of Gibraltar’s finance centre.
The reforms also introduce tougher measures to ensure compliance and allow for lower personal taxation, but the key element of the new Income Tax Act is a reduction in company tax from 22% to 10% as from January, 2011.
The new framework replaces the tax exempt regime, which Gibraltar has phased out following pressure from the European Union.
In a briefing paper issued alongside the text of the Act, the government said that the new company tax rate had been set at a level that would generate that required by the public purse. It would also stimulate and sustain quality economic activity in a fiscal climate that is conventional in structure and content, but competitive in terms of taxation rates.
“Thousands of local jobs, much Government revenue and thus our public services, depend on Gibraltar having an internationally competitive tax system,” said Chief Minister Peter Caruana. “Many previously tax exempt banks, insurance, investment, gaming and other companies will begin to pay profit tax in Gibraltar for the first time on the same basis as all other companies.
These companies are vital to our economy and to the social prosperity of all of us in Gibraltar”.
The new Income Tax Act is the product of a year of intensive work by the government and a group of advisors drawn from the legal and accountancy communities. The government has now published the text of the legislation as well as a detailed briefing document, inviting any feedback by July 23. The Act is expected to be approved by Parliament in October.
The new legislation ends all distinction between ‘onshore’ and ‘offshore’ business. Together with the tax information exchange agreements being entered into by the government – coupled to Gibraltar’s full integration in the EU and compliance with EU financial services regulation, money laundering and co-operation rules – the new Tax Act completes Gibraltar’s 14-year transition from ‘tax haven’ to mainstream European financial services centre.
The lower rates of taxation are accompanied by an improved culture of compliance and also by strong anti-avoidance provisions to ensure that all chargeable economic activity is effectively captured, thus producing the intended revenue yield to the government.Compliance is essential in order to ensure the success of the low company taxes, as well as the further lowering of personal taxes. The new Act therefore introduces tough anti-avoidance measures and default financial and legal penalties to help ensure that all pay the taxes that are due.
The legislation also introduces severe criminal consequences, as well as personal liability, for directors and managers of companies that withhold tax from workers’ pay and then fail to pay it over to the government promptly.
To level the playing field between PAYE payers on the one hand and companies and self employed people on the other, the latter
will, in future, have to pay tax during the tax year on account of that year’s tax bill. The legislation also introduces a system of self assessment and hefty financial penalties for defaulting on payment or returns.
“Tax is very important, but Gibraltar is more than about just tax: it is also about political and economic stability, good regulation and high standards and a safe business environment, high quality of personal lifestyle, good professional services and communications, and availability of well educated staff,” Mr Caruana said.
“The climate of compliance sought to be created by the new Act is also intended to enable the government to continue and proceed further with its long established programme of tax cutting for individuals as well.
Low tax must come hand in hand with an end to our historically benign tax administration and enforcement system.
Income Tax Act
is a reduction in
company tax
from 22% to
10% as from
January, 2011
19
Chamber News
Gibraltar’s Young Enterprise winners triumphant in the UK
The winners of this year’s Young Enterprise (YE) competition in
Gibraltar, Gibsights, came third in the UK national finals held in London on July 14th. They were representing the Yorkshire and Humber region after winning that regional heat in June. This is nothing short of an amazing achievement when you consider that they were one of 12 finalists from an entry pool of 2,500 YE companies from across the UK. Very well done to them.
Young Enterprise arrived at the Gibraltar College two years ago and is now firmly established on the Rock. The scheme encourages the development of business skills amongst young people, as well as emphasising the importance of teamwork, problem-solving, motivation and self-esteem. And it’s real-life stuff: teams set up real companies, issue real shares and appoint key positions in finance, sales, operations, human resources and marketing. They then develop a business plan to sell a real product or service. Think The Apprentice without the hiring and firing.
YE’s emphasis is very much on ‘learning by doing’ which naturally complements the perhaps more academic structures of the classroom. Teams are guided by Link Teachers at the College during the week and are also mentored by Business Advisors – volunteers from Gibraltar’s business community who steer, question and challenge the teams on the decisions and actions that they’ve taken.
This year five companies appeared in the Gibraltar final at the John Mackintosh Hall in May. Gibsights, with their innovative MP3 tourist product won out, but the other teams also showed a level of creativity and professionalism which was unthinkable back in October last year when they first formed their companies. The judging panel, made up of members of the local business community – John Perez, Chief Executive of Bland Group; Tony Welsh, Chief Executive of Marks & Spencer Gibraltar; Pepe Caruana, Senior Partner at Deloitte; and Franco Cassar, General Manager of Barclays Bank – were impressed at the standard of the entries and ideas.
So this year’s competition in Gibraltar belonged to Gibsights. Team members
Mark Moreno, Syanne Agius, Sarah Martinez and Joel Williams developed and produced a series of Gibraltar walking tours incorporating both a map and an MP3 player with professionally recorded audio-guide. As a convincing show of their powers of persuasion, the team managed to secure the official endorsement of both the Gibraltar Tourist Board and the Gibraltar Museum. The team sold advertising space on the map to raise revenue for the production of the walking tours which were pre-recorded onto the MP3 players. In the first day the company sold over 110 devices at £15 each. They’ve now gone on to place a further order for MP3 players and are researching ways to develop their product. The team’s Link Teachers at Gibraltar College were Daniel Benrimoj and Roin Sampere and their Business Advisors were Alfredo and Ramon Vasquez from Vasquez Consulting Ltd. There’s more information about the company at www.gibsights.com
The four other companies taking part in this year’s Gibraltar final were Eco-Books who published a children’s book aimed at raising awareness of the local environment – they have plans to publish further titles. Fresh, who presented a novel way of promoting health and hygiene in Gibraltar; Made-Easy, who developed an environmental approach to selling surplus construction materials via an agreement with local developer and building company Sharrock Shand. And finally, Minichef who presented their idea for a cookbook designed to encourage healthy eating aimed primarily at children and young people.
In a testament to the success of the scheme, two of last year’s finalists have continued their companies and are now
running professional businesses. One of them, Graziella Moreno, who runs Goods ‘R Us providing catering services, gave the 2010 final an update of her
year in business. In a confident presentation she highlighted what she had gained from Young Enterprise and how it had helped her to go on and develop her business. Aptly, her company provided the catering at the post-presentation reception.
For the second year running the Gaggero Foundation has given generous financial support to Young Enterprise, which has enabled the programme to be developed further – not only by offering a number of different programmes to more students, but also by enabling the schemes’ extension to students at Bayside School. More developments of this kind are planned in the year ahead.
The Chamber is also active in supporting the scheme and the Department of Education have given it its full backing. Both obviously recognise it as an investment in Gibraltar’s future. B2B wishes Gibsights and all this year’s finalists every success in the future.
YE’s emphasis is
very much on
learning by doing
20
Chamber News
New ASYCUDA system a boon for traders
HM Customs Gibraltar (HMC) will soon have a new IT system
for processing imports, calculating duty and ensuring that reliable statistics are collected on a timely basis.
Until now HMC have been using the same system since 1993 and the age of the current platform (Sco Unix) means that it can’t deal with the increasing demands of a growing private sector with the accompanying year on year increase in imports.
The Automated System for Customs Data or ASYCUDA as it’s better-known, is a computerised system designed by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), based in Geneva. Being an inter-governmental body the aim of the system is to automate as much of the
processing of customs documents as possible. The main benefit of this is the avoidance of duplication or other data input errors which leads to more reliable duty forecasts and so assists government planning.
The new system is in use in 94 countries around the world. It is completely open source, which means that it can interface with software created by other designers.
For local importers and traders there are other benefits to the new system apart from those outlined above: goods will be able to be cleared through pre-submission without having to go to the EPU with physical paperwork. Provided all the paperwork is submitted electronically before the goods arrive at the EPU, Customs should be able to clear them without delay. As the new system is electronic it also creates an audit
trail. The system will generate a unique barcode for each customs declaration, which will make document reconciliation easier. Other features of the system are an electronic mailbox, which will automatically notify users about the status of their customs declarations and easy identification of commodity codes by using a simple search tool.
The system is fully encrypted so security of individual traders’ information is maintained to the highest level. There are also a number of other security features built into the system so that importers can give different staff members more, or less, access to parts of the system depending on the level of permissions they set. Importers and traders will need to arrange this directly with the ASYCUDA unit at Customs.
Members will also be pleased to know that the recently introduced forms for imported electrical and electronic goods, as required by the WEEE legislation, have also been incorporated into the new system at the Chamber’s request.
Another useful feature for importers is that the system will now allow a simulation of a declaration to show details of product codes, any licences required and the all-important duty to be levied. As traders know only too well, sometimes their own calculations of duty payable have not always tallied with what Customs says is payable and sometimes the difference has taken months before it became apparent. This can have significant effects on a business’s cash flow.
Training for Chamber Members
The new system will be introduced some-time in the autumn. No date has been set but all companies who import physical goods into Gibraltar, whether as agents, wholesalers or retailers will need to be trained on how to use it. The Chamber is working with Customs to develop a training schedule for its members in time for the introduction of the new system. Members will be updated on a timetable for this in the next few months.
In the meantime though we would ask members to notify the Chamber of who in their company they will be nominating for training on the ASYCUDA system. If you have any questions please contact the Chamber on 20078376 or by email to [email protected]
21
Chamber News
Summer 2010: Air Timetable
OTHER AIRLINE NEWS
Málaga (AGP)
Ryanair (FR) has opened its 42nd base at Barcelona (BCN). The airline will introduce 14 weekly flights to Málaga (AGP) from 2nd September. Ryanair (FR) is to launch twice weekly flights to the Norwegian city of Haugesund on 22nd June.
Sevilla (SVQ)
As part of the establishment of its new base at Barcelona (BCN), Ryanair (FR) will launch twice daily flights from 2nd September.
easyJet (EZY) travellers may notice that they are travelling in larger aircraft this summer. Owing to what the airline describes as ‘crew shortages’, the carrier is leasing several fully crewed aircraft from other operators. The first aircraft, a Boeing 757-200, has been leased from Air Finland and entered service in easyJet’s distinctive colours on a flight between Liverpool and Málaga on 12th June. Two further aircraft, another Boeing 757, this time leased from Astraeus Airlines and a wide body Boeing 767-300 from Titan Airways will follow shortly. It is likely that the Air Finland aircraft will be the only one to be repainted. While the Boeing 767 is too large to land in Gibraltar, the two Boeing 757s may make an appearance on an airport ramp near you…
London – Summer 2010
With the season in full swing, we thought it would be useful to summarise the weekly scheduled flights from local airports to four of London’s gateways.
Data is based on the week of 1st July 2010.
Weekly flights
Gibraltar London Gatwick (LGW) easyJet (EZY) 7(GIB) London Heathrow (LHR) British Airways (BA) 7 London Luton (LTN) Monarch (ZB) 7
Málaga London Gatwick (LGW) Aer Lingus (EI) 21(AGP) easyJet (EZY) 43 Monarch (ZB) 10 Thomson (TOM) 4 London Heathrow (LHR) British Airways (BA) 14 London Luton (LTN) easyJet (EZY) 17 Monarch (ZB) 5 Thomson (TOM) 2 London Stansted (STN) easyJet (EZY) 21 Ryanair (FR) 14
Jerez London Stansted (STN) Ryanair (FR) 6(XRY)
Sevilla London Heathrow (LHR) Vueling (VY) 7(SVQ) London Stansted (STN) Ryanair (FR) 7
Day Flight No. Airline Arr. From Dep. Flight No. To
Monday ZB068 Monarch 11.00 Luton 12.00 ZB069 Luton ZB574 Monarch 11.15 Manchester 12.00 ZB575 Luton BA490 British Airways 11.55 Heathrow 12.45 BA491 Heathrow EZY8903 easyJet 13.50 Gatwick 14.25 EZY8904 Gatwick
Tuesday ZB068 Monarch 11.55 Luton 12.40 ZB069 Luton BA490 British Airways 11.55 Heathrow 12.45 BA491 Heathrow EZY8903 easyJet 13.40 Gatwick 14.10 EZY8904 Gatwick
Wednesday ZB574 Monarch 11.00 Manchester 11.45 ZB575 Manchester ZB068 Monarch 11.00 Luton 12.00 ZB069 Luton BA490 British Airways 11.55 Heathrow 12.45 BA491 Heathrow EZY8903 easyJet 13.50 Gatwick 14.25 EZY8904 Gatwick
Thursday ZB068 Monarch 10.40 Luton 11.30 ZB069 Luton BA490 British Airways 11.55 Heathrow 12.45 BA491 Heathrow EZY8903 easyJet 13.50 Gatwick 14.25 EZY8904 Gatwick
Friday ZB574 Monarch 11.00 Manchester 11.45 ZB575 Manchester BA490 British Airways 11.55 Heathrow 12.45 BA491 Heathrow EZY8903 easyJet 13.45 Gatwick 14.25 EZY8904 Gatwick ZB062 Monarch 18.55 Luton 19.55 ZB063 Luton
Saturday EZY8901 easyJet 11.05 Gatwick 11.40 EZY8902 Gatwick ZB068 Monarch 11.55 Luton 12.40 ZB069 Luton BA490 British Airways 11.55 Heathrow 12.45 BA491 Heathrow
Sunday EZY8901 easyJet 11.05 Gatwick 11.40 EZY8902 Gatwick BA490 British Airways 11.55 Heathrow 12.45 BA491 Heathrow ZB062 Monarch 18.10 Luton 18.55 ZB063 Luton
Information kindly supplied by Brian T Richards.
22
Chamber News
MidTown: Chamber members express concern
Chamber members have expressed serious concern as Government encroaches on private sector activities.
The Government’s announcement that it will become a co-developer in the long-awaited Mid-Town Project due to commercial finance not being in place also raises concerns among many local businesses trading in uncertain times. If this project is successful, then there should be a profit for government. However, if it fails, the subsequent liabilities for the taxpayer could be considerable.
In the last year the government has become the dominant building contractor in Gibraltar. The budget announced that they’re also planning to set up a local bank as well as become a property developer. When the Chief Minister asserts that “real socialists flock to the GSD” it’s not hard to see why. It is alarming for Chamber members to see how the ever-rising costs being levied on their businesses are being used to subsidise government companies that are then competing head-on with members’ businesses.
Chamber President Nicholas Russo said, “As we commented recently, times are a great deal tougher than they were 12 months ago. Our members in all sectors have been trying to manage their cost bases accordingly. We thought that government had taken this on board. The Chamber is now fearful that the number of jobs lost in the last 12 months will increase as a direct result of the cost increases announced this week. That is bad for business, bad for government revenues and bad for Gibraltar.”
23
Business Briefs
Commercial Real Estate
The top tip of those betting on the Gibraltar property market in 2009 was to invest in commercial
office space as quite simply, demand was outstripping supply so prices would have to increase. Below we investigate what’s happening to the supply and demand of office space and whether there is, indeed, an office crisis.
Supply
The supply of office space is coming from the last remaining units in recent developments (eg Ocean Village) and the refurbishment or change of use of existing older property stock. Scaffolding along Main Street, Irish Town and Engineer’s Lane identifies where more offices are being created. Other existing buildings outside of the Old Town also have the space and capability of adding further to the supply of office space. If banks regain the appetite for funding refurbishment, the built space is already out there.
However, construction hasn’t yet started on any of the new major office developments that have planning permission. This is most likely due to: the world economic crisis which still prevents the banks from lending on such projects; the insufficient demand for off-plan sales; and the high cost of construction given the strong (albeit weakening) euro. In reality, a combination of these three factors is delaying the projects. So, the chances of seeing significant areas of newly built modern office space before 2012 is nil.
Demand
In relative terms to the UK and Spain, demand for office space in Gibraltar is buoyant. In absolute terms, it is probably a steady trickle. Enquiries for space from outside of Gibraltar continue unabated, but
probably not at the exponential rate at which some may have wished, or perhaps not the size of company that was envisaged.
New gaming companies are being attracted to Gibraltar, we know that, as are insurance and funds related businesses. These all need office space. However, there have been redundancies locally and expansion plans put on hold, so existing offices are being freed up and added to the supply.
Trend
There is now a noticeable change in the type of office in demand. Visit the new much improved offices at Quest Insurance, Jyske Bank and Gibtelecom for example. These are modern, open plan – with raised floors for ease of cabling – air-conditioned, light and have attractive entrances to give the correct impression to visiting clients. These are the types of offices in demand.
So although there may be 5,000 sq metres of office space currently available in Gibraltar – which is well over one year’s supply – the availability of quality office space with quality entrances is in fact dwindling as these are the types of offices being snapped up first.
Mike Nicholls is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants and the founder of MN Associates Limited, a local company specialising in Gibraltar property, funding, relocation and financial management.
Mike Nicholls
24
Business Briefs
New Current Account from local Building Society
One of Gibraltar’s Main Street financial stalwarts, the N&P
(Norwich and Peterborough Building Society) recently launched a new current account offering some interesting benefits, including a direct ‘phone line into the branch for account customers – which can’t be a bad thing in our book. Other banks, please take note.
If you’re interested in opening an account, you can pop into the branch at 198-200 Main Street and talk to a member of staff. For those of you quick off the mark N&P are offering the chance to enter a competition to win a luxury wine-tasting trip in Andalucia. Just go to the branch and mention this article or call 200 45050 before August 14th and book a meeting with a staff member. The prize includes return travel in a classic car (so no worries about drinking and driving!), wine tasting and lunch in the beautiful Ronda Valley.
Below are some other benefits of the new N&P current account.
• £500 interest and fee-free overdraft• £50 account switching guarantee• Account opening within 24 hours• Ability to open the account with just £1• Direct line to your branch• Free everyday banking – no monthly
charges• Access to an exclusive savings account
paying 5% gross/AER• Low overdraft rates
In addition, if you need to switch from your existing current account provider N&P will guarantee to complete the switch within 10 days or they’ll give you £50.
Samantha Hemingway, retail sales and service manager, says: “We believe that our current account is the best in town. It provides access to a top-paying savings account and it can be up and running
within just 24 hours! We’re looking forward to sharing our best kept secret with everyone.”
Pure FocusEnabling growth in business and societyDeloitte provides a full range of services which include auditing, tax and fi nancial advisory services. As a member of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu our services are guided by global common principles that infl uence the way we perform our daily work and ensure all our services are consistently of the highest quality.
Our service philosophy centers around strong partner involvement and understanding of your business needs. We listen to you and work with you. We understand the environment you operate in. We communicate regularly and provide information in a form you can use to make effective business decisions.
For more information, call Joseph L Caruana or Stephen J Reyes on: Tel: +350 200 41200, Nightline: +350 200 48282, Fax: +350 200 [email protected]
Merchant House, 22/24 John Mackintosh Square, P.O. Box 758, Gibraltar
© 2008 Deloitte Limited. Member of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu
www.deloitte.gi
25
Business Briefs
Gibtelecom achieves EFQM accreditation
Gibtelecom has been awarded the ‘Recognised for Excellence’
accreditation from the European Foundation of Quality Management (EFQM), a first for a Gibraltar company.
Following an on-site assessment and evaluation by a team of EFQM assessors, which included interviews and focus groups with a wide cross-section of employees, the company was awarded four-star recognition under the EFQM scheme. The award, said a Gibtelecom spokesperson, “is a clear signal for our customers that the company uses the best, well-tested and universally recognised practices in the area of leadership, partnerships and business strategy. The assessors were particularly impressed with the company’s strong customer focus, financial performance and management of technology, as well as the empowerment of employees”.
Gibtelecom’s Chairman, the Hon. Joe Holliday, praised Gibtelecom for “being recognised as it moves forward on its journey of continuous improvement. The Company has always demonstrated its commitment to
quality, excellence and improvement and this accreditation, breaking new ground for a local business, provides further evidence that Gibtelecom is a leading business in Gibraltar worthy of being benchmarked.”
The EFQM ‘Recognised for Excellence’ is a programme based on an external analysis of an organisation’s overall performance and achievements. The award provides evidence that an organisation is high performing, able to innovate and deliver top quality results. The EFQM model is applied widely throughout many industries such as manufacturing, electronics and financial services, as well as educational and government institutions. Previous ‘Recognised for Excellence’ recipients include Siemens AG, O2, T-Mobile, Citibank, EDF Energy and Bosch.
As part of the assessment, the EFQM team thoroughly scrutinised a submission document prepared by Gibtelecom employees, which evidenced Company processes and good practices. This was then supplemented by three days of assessment by three examiners from Belgium, Germany and the UK and involved
nearly 50 members of staff across different grades, locations and departments – a third of Gibtelecom employees.
Tim Bristow, Gibtelecom’s CEO, commented: “this is a great result for the Company, and all its stakeholders including staff and customers. One of the key features of the EFQM is the development of people, with every employee having been involved in one way or another in the processes and projects which have helped to cultivate a culture of quality and excellence within the Company”. He continued, “the award is a great way for Gibtelecom to celebrate its 20th birthday this month, for which the staff and locally based Board Directors assembled for a photograph in John Mackintosh Square last week”.
Gibtelecom joined the EFQM in 1994 during its time as Gibraltar Nynex Communications (GNC). The company attained the ‘Committed to Excellence’ status in 2004, after the bringing together of GNC and Gibtel into common ownership. Gibtelecom is also an ISO registered company, having been upgraded to the latest ISO 9001:2008 standard in April 2009.
Gibraltar signs tax exchange information agreement with Netherlands
PricewaterhouseCoopers Gibraltar has announced that the Gibraltar
government signed a tax agreement with the Dutch government in April. Furthermore, PWC Gibraltar notes that following a recent development in the Dutch Dividend With-holding Tax Act 1965, dividend payments made to a Gibraltar parent company can now be paid without suffering withholding tax on distribution in the Netherlands.
Dividends and capital gains derived from Gibraltar-registered companies are tax exempt in the Netherlands as long as the qualifying subsidiary is intended not to be held as a mere portfolio investment.
Based on the Parent Subsidiary Regulations 2008, dividends and capital gains are not subject to taxation in Gibraltar subject to certain conditions
and as a result no tax is withheld on outbound dividends.
Gibraltar does not levy withholding tax on interest where the interest payment itself is not subject to taxation in Gibraltar. In the Netherlands, no withholding tax on outbound interest is levied.
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27
Business Briefs
Local bank sponsors winning Ferrari
Power outage – how did it affect you?
Many Gibraltar businesses suffered from a major power outage on 28th
April following an incident in the vicinity of the dockyard. This had a knock-on effect on telecommunications including mobile and internet services. The impact on small/medium businesses was considerable with the retail sector particularly exposed on a day when there were two cruise ships in port.
However, many of the global businesses based in Gibraltar, in particular online gaming and financial services operators, benefited from having previously identified this type of risk
with proper mitigation in their business resumption plans, as well as utilising premium services provided by specialist local suppliers.
Whether through their own facilities or services delivered – e.g. by external suppliers or landlords – big business in Gibraltar generally kept operating as normal. Offices in the Europort commercial complex were not affected by the power outage thanks to considerable investment in uninterruptable power supply and generators. Internet companies who rely on Gibraltar having resilient telecommunications were also mostly unaffected as, although Gibtelecom services
went down (with damaged hardware delaying any chance of a quick resolution for some), Sapphire Networks’ customers were not disrupted.
Sapphire, who specialise in resilient services for this industry sector, were also able to quickly support customers requiring extra short-term capacity to cover for Gibtelecom’s problems with their recently-launched Event Bursting service. “Event Bursting was designed specifically to help betting companies with major sporting events as well as this type of disaster scenario” said Lawrence Isola, Sapphire’s Managing Director.
Local financial institution, Turicum Private Bank is this year sponsoring a Ferrari F430
in the Italian GT3 championship. Drivers Brian Lavio and Stefano Gatuso of the Kessel Racing team were victorious at the championships held at the Vallelunga circuit close to Rome.
Ben Moss of Turicum Private Bank who was at the meet said that “despite Brian (Lavio) being new to the GT3 championship – following on from his rallying career – he’s proving to be very quick, consistently recording fast lap times and ultimately keeping the car in front. We’re very happy with the result, and will remain keen supporters throughout the year keeping a close eye on Brian’s career”.
These races are fervently followed in Italy attracting close to one million television viewers, and being a Ferrari, the Turicum sponsored car is bound to meet the approval of the Tifosi!
Mario Fabbri, Chief Investment Officer of Turicum Private Bank, which is Italian in origin, said that “there are plenty of shared values between the Ferrari brand and Turicum; the first to come to mind are exclusivity and performance”. He added that “it’s also great to be part of something this spectacular, and to be able to spread the word about our beloved Gibraltar”. Although the season still has a long way to go with races at the famed circuits of Monza, Mugello and Imola, the Turicum car has had an excellent start and promising results; one to be watched by racing fans in Gibraltar!
Turicum Private Bank is a privately-owned bank and asset management company founded in Gibraltar in 1993. Its shareholders include lawyers, bankers, asset and fund managers. Turicum is the Latin name given to the city of Zurich by the Romans when they founded the city in 15 BC.
29
People on the Move
A new look Lord Nelson
After eight years on Gibraltar’s party circuit, Casemates’ Lord
Nelson has recently undergone a major makeover. Not only does the Bar Brasserie now have new decor, a new audiovisual system and a new menu, it also has a brand new management team – let’s introduce them.
Gareth and Stuart, despite only being in their early 30s, bring a wealth of experience to the table. Both have been in key management roles for leading pub operators in the UK gaining a plethora of plaudits and qualifications. Their most successful venture was the Anchor in Bedford where they held the license for three years and did a roaring local trade in food and beverage. High standards of customer service come as second nature to both, particularly for Gareth who served dignitaries and royals as part of Concorde’s cabin crew, winning an Award for Excellence in the process.
Gareth comments, “Our vision for the Lord Nelson is to retain its fantastic atmosphere and reputation then increase food sales with our fresh looking menu, instil excellent standards throughout via continuous staff
training and achieve targets set by our Directors. We’ll of course stay true to our ‘Live Music Venue of the Year’ reputation. In short, we hope that every guest who visits the Lordy goes on to spread the word about how good it was.”
The strictly over 18s venue which is the official home to Gibraltar Rugby Club is gearing up for a fantastically busy summer. Each Friday, Saturday and Sunday the Lord Nelson will have Live Music featuring both ‘home-grown’ and ‘imported’ talent. A new menu will include homemade pizzas, jacket potatoes, burritos, a selection of sizzlers, prime steaks and paninis all freshly prepared on the premises. Meanwhile, an extensive wine list, six draught beers and plenty of imported bottled varieties will keep every thirst quenched – and they’re still also offering tea or coffee for £1.20 with complimentary newspapers.
Gareth finishes, “Stuart and I are delighted that we made the move from the UK to Gibraltar. We’ve fallen in love with the Gibraltarian culture and relaxed way of life and can’t wait to continue the Lord Nelson’s reign as number one bar in Casemates”.
The pub’s Directors John and Andy Hunter have been part of the Gibraltar hospitality scene for 20 years and have five bars under their stewardship – Gibraltar Arms, The Star Bar, Lord Nelson, O’Reilly’s Irish Pub and the Britannia Bar within the Cruise Terminal.
Local returns to strengthen NatWest’s Treasury & Investor team
Gibraltarian Dayle Rowbottom has joined NatWest’s Treasury
and Investor Solutions team as Treasury Associate.
Educated locally and a former Gibraltar Scholar, Dayle obtained an honours degree in economics from the University of York. He also holds the Securities and Investment Institute Level 3 certificates in Securities and Derivatives as well as the ACI Dealing Certificate.
His banking career with the Group began in Jersey in 2008 where he joined the Treasury & Investors Solutions team. His most recent role was within the Corporate Risk Solutions team focusing on foreign exchange risk management for corporate clients.
Dayle has now returned to Gibraltar to take on a similar post with NatWest working directly with clients to understand their needs and create solutions to meet their underlying financial market requirements. He is specialising in developing foreign exchange risk management strategies for corporate clients facing currency exposure. Dayle brings a wealth of experience with him from his time in Jersey where a high level of sophisticated treasury services are provided to a broad range of clients.
Dayle commented “I am delighted to be joining the Gibraltar business after my spell in Jersey. We are focussed on providing a high quality service to our clients in the areas of
money markets, foreign exchange, interest rates and structured investment requirements. What makes the Bank’s approach stand out is its clear commitment to having a thorough understanding of its clients’ foreign exchange risk management needs and then investing time and effort in creating solutions tailored to those business needs”.
Welcoming Dayle back to Gibraltar and to the bank’s team, Gerald Rodriguez, Director, Corporate Treasury Solutions, commented: “Dayle’s arrival will provide my team with much needed resources. His time in Jersey has provided him with invaluable experience and he will be able to use this to promote the FX hedging side of the business. In Gibraltar we live in a dual currency environment and therefore many of our businesses are exposed to currency fluctuations on a day-to-day basis. Dayle will focus on providing risk management solutions for clients facing this risk. I am sure he will be very successful in this role”.
Stuart and Gareth lead at the Lord Nelson
30
People on the Move
Taxi Association take the shield in NatWest’s inaugural Paddle Tennis Tournament
NatWest’s first paddle tennis tournament
took place on 29 May in the Sports and Leisure Centre, where eight teams fought to be the first to have their names engraved on the winners’ shield.
This fast-paced game, which is adapted from traditional tennis, is over a hundred years old. It’s played on a smaller court with a depressurised ball and a solid paddle replaces the strung racquet. Since the provision of new Paddle courts in the Sports Centre as well as those created at Sandpits, the sport seems to have really taken off on the Rock.
Tournament honours went to the The Taxi Association, with Montagu Group runners up. Plate winners were Triay Stagnetto Neish (TSN) with Aquagib runners up.
Each team paid a £50 entry fee and all proceeds were donated to Cancer Relief – one of the key charities NatWest is supporting through its fundraising efforts this year.
Marvin Cartwright, NatWest’s Regional Head commented: “This has been a fantastic start to our competition and I would like to thank everyone for entering into the spirit of the occasion. I would also like to congratulate this year’s champions; I hope they will come back next year to defend their title. I am confident this event will grow each year and we are determined to make it a fixture on the corporate sporting calendar”.
Ian Victor heads up Lombard
After 20 years with Barclays here in Gibraltar, finishing as Head of the Local Corporate team in 2004, and five years
in the wealth/company management/trust sector, Ian joined Lombard in March of this year.
Lombard is the asset financing arm of the RBS Group and the UK sector’s market leader. Locally, they provide a wide range of flexible and very competitive asset finance solutions to corporate clients as well as car and motorbike finance for the personal sector.
Paddle Winners 2010 Johnny Lopez and Francis Desoiza
Nat West Paddle tournament 2010
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How Crass is that? Where red tape makes no sense at all In the first of a series of columns highlighting some of the more idiosyncratic bureaucratic hoops that we have to jump through to do business here in Gibraltar, M&S’s Chris Walker tells us how much trouble a humble can of meat can cause. Any similar anecdotes or experiences gratefully received at [email protected]
Although the current rules are in place to make sure that any meat products brought into Gibraltar are fit for human
consumption our regulations here are now so dated that we’re left with the following farcical scenario. When M&S import a can from the UK containing any meat products – for example a can of chilli con carne – we have to pay a DEFRA certified vet to go to our warehouse in the UK and inspect a sealed can, (yes, a sealed can, he doesn’t have to open it!) then sign it off as fit for export to Gibraltar. This is despite the fact that that same can of chilli con carne is sold in over 300 of our UK stores every day and has already passed all UK/EU food standard regulations. And yet we here in Gib still have to pay a vet to sign the can off for export. Where’s the sense in that?!
STOP PRESS: Never say that we here at B2B don’t ever bring you good news... we’ve just heard that the Food Environmental Agency have changed the rules and will now accept a letter from the meat supplier in question detailing their Health Certificate number. So now there’s no need for a DEFRA vet to inspect a stack of cans – not good news for the vet, but great for businesses in Gibraltar.
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