Barita Investments Limited has demolished two landmark Kingston properties and hired a global development executive to lead their redevelopment – the clearest signal yet that the investment group is serious about becoming a real estate developer.
The bulldozers have already done their work. Demolition is complete at the former Kingston Ice factory and adjacent lands on Harbour Street in downtown Kingston, as well as at the former Eden Gardens hotel site in New Kingston. Both sites are now cleared and positioned for construction. A third property in the broader portfolio has reached an advanced stage of planning, though the company has not named it.
Chairman Mark Myers said the milestones “accelerate the platform’s transition from mark-to-market appreciation towards a project-based, cash-generative return profile, underpinned by disciplined capital deployment”.
To lead the buildout, Barita has appointed Bernhard Stocker as chief executive officer of its real estate platform. A trained architect with a master of science from the Vienna University of Technology and executive education from the Wharton School, Stocker brings more than two decades of experience delivering complex residential, hospitality and mixed-use developments across Europe, the Middle East, Asia and North America. His previous work includes Saudi Arabia’s NEOM Vision 2030 project and Mandarin Oriental developments in Grand Cayman.
“[The appointment] deepens the group’s execution capability at a pivotal moment in the platform’s evolution, marking the transition from valuation-driven returns towards development delivery and recurring cash generation,” Myers added.
The financial results for the June quarter underscored the group’s momentum. Barita nearly doubled its revenue to $5.2 billion, up from $2.5 billion a year earlier, driven by gains on investment activities, which surged 285 per cent to $4.0 billion. Net profit after tax rose 24 per cent to $1.3 billion, lifting earnings per share to $1.10 from $0.89.
For the nine months to June, net operating revenue climbed 61 per cent to $10.1 billion, while net profit rose 20 per cent to $2.7 billion. Gains on investment activities surged 157 per cent to $5.9 billion, and net interest income more than doubled, climbing 116 per cent to $1.0 billion. Total assets expanded by $33.4 billion to $183 billion, while shareholders’ equity closed at $38 billion, with a capital adequacy ratio of 26.3 per cent – more than twice the regulatory minimum.
During the quarter, the Bank of Jamaica granted Barita a Financial Holding Company licence, aligning the group with consolidated supervision under the Banking Services Act. Cornerstone Trust and Merchant Bank Limited was renamed Barita Merchant Bank Limited, while JN Fund Managers Limited – acquired in January for $3.8 billion – was renamed Barita Fund Managers Limited. The acquired business contributed net operating income of $519.6 million and profit after tax of $118.7 million for the period.
The financials also showed that non-interest expenses rose 80 per cent to $5.8 billion, weighed down by expected credit loss charges of $1.2 billion – a sharp reversal from a $9.8-million ECL reversal a year earlier – and an $883.8-million impairment of intangible assets tied to a reset of Barita’s technology modernisation programme. Administrative expenses climbed 59 per cent to $3.3 billion. The company described the technology restructuring as a deliberate decision to streamline the programme, not a retreat from digital investment.
Looking ahead, Myers struck a cautious tone on the interest rate outlook, noting that inflation has breached the Bank of Jamaica’s four to six per cent target range. He warned that “incremental net interest margin expansion over the near term is likely to be constrained, given the limited scope for further easing in the current policy cycle and a global rates environment that continues to reinforce a ‘higher for longer’ profile”.
business@gleanerjm.com
