reserve bank of fiji _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ address by governor of the reserve bank of fiji barry whiteside rd at the 3 anniversary celebrations of hfc bank 4 march 2017 mr tom ricketts. chairman of the hfc bank board members of the board mr raj sharma, acting chief executive officer management and staff members of the media invited guests ladies and gentlemen bula vinaka and a very good morning to you all! introductory comments i am pleased to join you in celebrating this special day, marking the 3rd anniversary of hfc bank ’ s operations as a commercial bank. i always welcome such opportunities to celebrate the achievements of our licensed financial institutions as they confirm to us the commitment and resilience they have to continue to serve our people. the fijian financial system has evolved significantly into a modern, reputable and stable one, which has safely steered our economy through the past two decades, and is considered the most advanced amongst our pacific island countries. three years ago when the reserve bank of fiji first received an application for a commercial banking licence by home finance company limited there was a bit of hesitancy on our part to accept the proposal. however, with the acknowledgement of the performance of hfc as a licensed credit institution for 18 years, the commitment of strong shareholders, and also the strengthening of the reserve bank ’ s own regulatory capacity, it was agreed that it was an opportune time to allow a locally owned bank to operate. it was, however, not a light decision as hfc bank will acknowledge, with the reserve bank setting high expectations for the institution and continuing to closely liaise on necessary regulatory matters, in line with our mandate of protecting fijian depositors. i therefore wish to congratulate the shareholders of hfc bank, its board, management and staff for this milestone we are celebrating today, achieved through great dedication and teamwork. hfc bank ladies and gentlemen, from the humble beginnings of a home loan provider in 1962 and later as a licensed credit institution with services limited to providing term deposits and loans limited to mortgage financing, hfc today boasts a vast offering of financial services akin to other banks in fiji. substantial and necessary investment into its technological platform has

reserve bank of fiji _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ address by governor of the reserve bank of fiji barry whiteside at the listing of free bird institute limited on the south pacific stock exchange venue : intercontinental hotel, natadola, 2 february 2017 mr hiroshi taniguchi, chair and chief executive officer of free bird institute limited the board and management team of free bird institute limited dr nur bano ali, chair of the board of the south pacific stock exchange ms latileta qoro, chief executive officer of the south pacific stock exchange members of the capital markets industry members of the media invited guests, ladies and gentlemen introductory comments ni sa bula vinaka, “ konnichiwa ” and a very good morning to you all! i am delighted to be here today to officiate in the listing of free bird institute limited on the south pacific stock exchange. i understand that it has been the founding shareholder, mr taniguchi ’ s dream to see his company listed on a stock exchange so i congratulate the institute for its perseverance in meeting all the necessary requirements for listing. less than a year ago, we witnessed the listing of vision investments limited ( vil ) and i noted at the time that it had been 5 years since there was any previous activity on the exchange. it is certainly pleasing to now see a second listing in less than a year. i feel this reflects the increasing acknowledgement of the benefits to be derived from participating in our small but developing stock market. background ladies and gentleman, free bird institute limited is a company with its own unique business intentions and a true visionary in mr taniguchi at the helm. i came to know about this gentleman several years ago when a reserve bank team comprising myself, some board members and our economics team came out west on one of our “ meet the industry ” trips. i was intrigued by the name of the institute and indicated to my team that we must make it a point to meet them. what did they do and where did the name “ free bird ” come from? clearly it had nothing to do with poultry distribution as i soon found out!! incidentally that west trip did include a visit with the rooster chicken people as