Board Of Directors
Mr. Stephen Grell (Chairman)
Managing Director, Republic Bank Ltd.
Stephen Grell was appointed Managing Director of Republic Bank (Guyana) Limited on April 26, 2021. Prior to this, Mr. Grell served as Vice President –Banking, Capital Markets and Advisory at Citibank (Trinidad and Tobago) Limited.
Mr. Grell was also: Manager, Investment Banking Division, Republic Bank Limited; Managing Partner/Portfolio Manager, Gracchi Capital Partners LLP; and Senior Investment Manager, Hartmann Capital Limited.
Mr. Grell holds a BA in Economics from Florida International University and an MSc. in Finance from the Florida International University – Chapman School of Business.
Mr. Eton Chester (Vice-Chairman)
Managing Director, Citizens Bank Inc.
Eton Chester joined Citizens Bank Guyana Inc. in June 1996 as the Finance Controller/Corporate Secretary, a position he served in until being appointed Managing Director in July 2007.
Prior to joining Citizen Bank, he was employed at the Bank of Guyana and held senior positions in the Debt Management, Internal Audit, and Bank Supervision Departments respectively.
Mr. Chester holds a BSc degree in Accounting, a Diploma from the ABA Stoiner Graduate School of Banking, and successfully completed the Ivey Executive Program at the University of Western Ontario.
He is a past Chairman of the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission, a past Director of Conservation International Guyana, and the former Honorary Consul for Jamaica.
Mr. Chester is the recipient of two national awards, the Order of Distinction from the Government of Jamaica, and the Arrow of Achievement from the Government of Guyana.
Mr. James Foster (Treasurer)
CEO, Guyana Bank for Trade & Industry
James Foster brings extensive experience in banking in the USA, the Caribbean and Canada. This covers private, retail, corporate banking and successful mergers as well as mortgage insurance and his seminal involvement in projects in many of the major world financial centres.
His earlier positions include Director, Sales & Service – CIBC FCIB (Barbados), Group Vice-President – AIC Financial Group (Trinidad and Tobago), General Manager, Business Improvement & Operations – RBC Bank/RBTT (Trinidad and Tobago), Senior Consultant – RBC Bank (Canada), and Assistant Vice-President, Projects – Bank Atlantic (USA).
Mr. Anil Kishun
CEO, New Building Society
Anil Kishun joined the New Building Society twenty-five years ago in 1996 and has served in a number of senior positions prior to assuming the office of Chief Executive Officer in 2015.
Mr. Kishun was Branch Manager at NBS’s Rosignol Branch for four years until June 2007 when he was appointed Head of Operations for the Society.
Mr. Kishun holds an MBA and is a Certified Public Accountant.
Mr. Richard Isava
Managing Director, GAMBI
Richard Isava, a career banker for over 25 years, has worked primarily in Trinidad and Tobago. His experience covers a wide range of sectors, including commercial banking, insurance, asset management and brokerage. For the past 8 years he’s headed the Guyana Americas Merchant Bank. During this time, he also served as the Executive Director for affiliate commercial bank, GBTI, from 2018 to 2021. He is also a director of GBTI.
Mrs. Chandra Gajraj
Managing Director, Trust Company Ltd.
Chandra Gajraj is a highly experienced career banker with over 40 years in the industry. She first joined Royal Bank Trust Company (Guyana) Limited, which was a wholly owned subsidiary of the Royal Bank of Canada. Up to 1984, Ms. Gajraj was first Administrative Officer then Senior Trust Officer. The Company changed ownership in 1984 and was renamed Trust Company (Guyana) Limited. Ms. Gajraj was appointed General Manager in 1986 and subsequently Managing Director.
Ms. Gajraj is a founding member of the private sector team which formed and incorporated Demerara Bank Limited in 1992. Since its inception, she has served as the Corporate Secretary/Director. Ms. Gajraj is a member of the Board of the Guyana Association of Securities Companies and Intermediaries Inc. (GASCI) which is Guyana’s stock exchange. She also serves on the Board of Diamond Fire and General Insurance Inc. and as General Secretary of the Guyana Hindu Dharmic Sabha.
Mrs. Nafeeza Gafoor
Country Manager, Scotia Bank Guyana
Nafeeza Gaffoor’s career at Scotiabank spans over 20 years, with seven (7) years spent in Ontario, Canada. She has held substantive positions within Scotiabank Guyana including: Branch Manager and Manager of Retail and Small Business Banking. Ms. Gaffoor is an experienced Sales Coach, particularly for the Small Business banking sector, in which she was active for eight (8) years in Guyana.
Since 2018, Ms. Gaffoor has
Ms. Gaffoor is a member of the Association of Business Executives, U.K. and holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Law from the University of London.
Mr. Maurice John
GM, Hand In Hand Trust Cooperation Inc.
Mr. Dowlat Parbhu
CEO, Demerara Bank Ltd.
Dowlat Parbhu, the visionary leader at the helm of Demerara bank Limited. Mr. Parbhu joined DBL in December 2007 and worked in various positions in Credit, Investment and previously served as General Manager. With a passion for innovation and a proven track record in driving success, he brings a unique blend of expertise and forward-thinking to the world of banking. Mr. Parbhu holds the following academic qualification including, HND (Accounting), BA [Hons] Accounting and Financial Management, MBA (Banking & Financing), Chartered Banker (CB), FCBI ( Fellow of the Chartered Banker Institute), ALIBF (Associate of the London Institute of Banking & Finance). This academic prowess, coupled with a thirst for knowledge, has been a driving force his professional journey.
Mr. Anand Kumar
Managing Director, Bank of Baroda
Anand Kumar joined the Bank of Baroda Group in 1992 and completed almost 30 years in different capacities at locations across India and abroad. At various times, he served as Manager of Credit, Manager of Planning and as the Regional Head of the branches at which he was serving.
His last foreign post was at Bank of Baroda Sydney from 2012 to 2017 where he was instrumental in establishing the bank’s first Australian branch.
Mr. Kumar’s extensive qualifications include: B.Sc (Hons); Master’s in Business Administration (Banking); Certified Associate of Indian Institute of Bankers; Certificate in Digital Banking-Indian Institute of Banking and Finance (IIBF); Certificate in Customer Service and Banking Codes and Standards (IIBF).
Kurt M.A. Kisto
Director & CEO – New Hayven Merchant Bank.
Financial Sector Professional, with 25 years of experience as a senior business executive, managing businesses and deploying private and public sector capital across Latin America and the Caribbean. He has a great depth and breadth of knowledge, experience, and relationships across many sectors, industries and countries; having previously lived and worked in Washington D.C., Guyana, Panama, Dominican Republic, and Trinidad & Tobago. Former Executive Director of the Inter-American Development Bank Group, Washington D.C., Chaired the sovereign lending committee of the Board of Directors, and a special task force of the Board of Governors on reforming the Bank’s sovereign lending to include risk mitigation. Worked with Regional Caribbean Conglomerates, International Development Institutions and Lectured at University. Former CEO in the Forestry, Port & Marine operations sectors in Guyana, former Board Member of the Guyana Forestry Commission, former President of the Guyana Forest Producers Association and Board Member of the Guyana Private Sector Commission. Former CEO in the Property Development & Real Estate sectors in Panama, Former Private Sector Specialist for UNDP Caribbean, and as a Business Development Consultant for the Commonwealth Secretariat’s Iwokrama Rain Forest project in Guyana. Before joining New Hayven he was Sr. Managing Director Latin America & Caribbean for a Global Private Equity firm based out of Washington D.C., and served on the firm’s Global Investment Committee. Kurt holds a BSc. in Bus. Admin., an Int. MBA, and a Grad. Dip. Int. Relations, from the University of the West Indies, and Exec. Edu. in Negotiation from Harvard University.