By Adrian Frater, Staff ReporterWESTERN BUREAU:
FIRSTCARIBBEAN International Bank, which has 90,000 regional customers, this week launched its exciting new Visa Getaway Give-away Promotion, which is geared towards rewarding loyal customers and boosting inter-regional travel.
The project, which is a joint venture with Sandals Resort International, offers the bank's customers, in the 15 Caribbean countries it serves, with an opportunity to win cash prizes of up to US$1000 as well as weekend getaways at Sandals properties in Jamaica and the Bahamas.
"This is a promotion through which we hope to bring public attention to the many features of this great card," said Cecile Watson, FirstCaribbean Director of Retail Banking. "However, most importantly, this is also a way of rewarding customers for their loyalty throughout the year." The promotion, which will run until January 11, 2004, offers FirstCaribbean cardholders with a chance to win weekly credit back prize of US$1000. At the end of promotion, the overall grand prize-winner will be rewarded with a trip to Sandals Bahamas.
"In addition to the prizes, this is a fabulous way of encouraging inter-regional travel," said Horace Peterkin, the General Manager of Sandals Montego Bay and 1st vice-president of the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA). "We have a lot of potential visitors in places like Barbados and Trinidad who we would like to expose our tourism product here in Jamaica."
According to Ms. Watson, FirstCaribbean International Bank, which emerged out of last year's merger between CIBC West Indies and Barclays Bank in the Caribbean, decided to choose Sandals Resort International as it's partner in this venture because of its history as an innovator.
"There are those who lead and those who follow," said Ms. Watson, in signalling her pleasure at the alliance with Sandals. "We have chosen to take the lead by launching this promotion at this time, and we are happy that in doing this, we have an outstanding partner in Sandals."
FirstCaribbean has total asset of over US$9 billion and a market capitalisation of about US$2 billion. It has over 700,000 active accounts, over 3,000 employees, 80 branches and 120 ATMs.
