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$70m in pension benefits heading to court

Published:Wednesday | August 10, 2022 | 12:09 AM

More than $70 million in pension benefits for 161 beneficiaries who are yet to be identified by the Financial Sector Adjustment Company Limited (FINSAC) could be handed over to the Supreme Court.

In its 2021 annual report that was tabled in Parliament on Friday, the company said it placed advertisements in the press on March 14, 2021, in an attempt to locate beneficiaries of the Jamaica Mutual Life Assurance Society pension scheme.

It said the March 14 advertisement was the fourth out of five required under the Pension (Superannuation Funds and Retirement Schemes) Regulations.

“In the event there are beneficiaries who are not located after the five years of consecutive advertisements, the funds remaining will be paid over to the Supreme Court,” the report stated.

FINSAC was established by the Government in January 1997 with a mandate to address the liquidity and solvency crisis that existed in the financial sector in the early 1990s.

During the financial year under review, the company continued to carry out residual activities such as the resolution of litigation matters, sale of remaining assets held by subsidiaries and associated companies, and pension-related issues.

In relation to asset disposal matters, FINSAC’s 72 per cent shareholding in Ciboney Group Limited (CGL) as at May 31, 2021, was in breach of the Jamaica Stock Exchange’s rules as a result of a shareholder’s net deficit of $2.7 million on its balance sheet position.

This could result in the delisting of the company from the Jamaica Stock Exchange, the report stated.

“Notwithstanding the financial position of CGL, there continues to be interest from potential purchasers to acquire FINSAC’s holdings in the company,” the report said.

For the period ending March 31, 2021, FINSAC recorded a net surplus of $18.5 million, a $13.04-million improvement over the previous year.