- Business round -up
- National recognition for Deutsche Bank.
- Sure subscribers up.
- Profile: Meet the managing director of Romerils
DEUTSCHE Bank in Jersey has been recognised for its investment banking, asset allocation and research expertise in the highly respected Euromoney 2015 Private Banking Survey.
Following comprehensive research by Euromoney, the results of which are published this month, Deutsche Bank was awarded the double accolade of Best for Investment Banking Capabilities and Best for Research and Asset Allocation in Jersey.
The survey is considered to be the benchmark for the global wealth management industry and reflects the opinions of private banking professionals across the world.
The results of the survey form the basis of the Euromoney Private Banking Awards.
Andreas Tautscher, chief country officer of Deutsche Bank in the Channel Islands, said: ‘We offer clients access to the full intellectual potential of our organisation, combining proprietary investment research with the best external research to provide a full range of investment solutions.
‘Our collaborative approach enables us to operate as one team across all functions and regions to ensure our clients can benefit from our global capabilities.
‘I am delighted that our investment and asset allocation and research expertise in Jersey have been judged by our peers through these rankings to be the best in Jersey.’
A CONTINUING increase in subscribers has enabled Sure to make a positive contribution to the annual results of parent company Batelco.
Sure in the Channel Islands and Isle of Man (CIIM) has witnessed an increase in both its mobile and broadband subscriptions.
Over the past year, the number of Sure mobile customers grew by three per cent to nearly 94,000 subscribers across the three islands.
At the same time, Sure’s broadband services are also proving popular with Islanders who enjoy the lower prices and services that Sure offers.
During 2014, the number of broadband customers increased by 15% to more than 28,000 across the islands.
‘Last year was marked by growing customer numbers across the group,’ said Batelco Group chairman, Shaikh Hamad Bin Abdulla Al Khalifa.
‘Our overseas operations, which become increasingly central to our strategy, continue to deliver in line with our expectations.’
In Batelco’s announcement of its 24% year-on-year increase in operating profits – up to $130.8 million – the company acknowledged Sure’s roll-out of 4G mobile broadband services in the islands and confirmed that Sure Jersey’s recently acquired Foreshore data centre business has now been successfully integrated into the company:
‘Following our acquisition by Batelco in 2013, 2014 was an excellent year for Sure in the Channel Islands and Isle of Man,’ said Eddie Saints, chief executive of Sure CIIM.
‘We are delighted that the quality of our services continues to attract hundreds of new customers and that Batelco continues to deliver on its promise of investment in the islands, as we can see with the acquisition of Foreshore and the introduction of our 4G mobile broadband network alongside new 2G and 3G networks.’
Name: Steve Jewell.
Age: 46.
Name of business: Romerils.
When established: 1950.
Position there: Managing director.
Number of employees: 116.
What was your first job?
Costing clerk – checking supplier invoices and generating sales price lists and quotations.
Your first break in business?
Being appointed Romerils IT manager in 1995. Shortly after returning from a year travelling around the world, my first management appointment involved a fair amount of re-skilling. Quite amusing really, as now I’m put to shame on computing and software by my more knowledgeable children!
What could the States do to help businesses?
It’s nothing that hasn’t been said, but it must be reinforced regularly, and that is less red tape, and the government should not get in the way of markets and businesses doing what they do best. The biggest issue is for policy makers to recognise that with regulation, one cap doesn’t fit all. Where some smaller businesses and industries are struggling to cope with regulation, they need to be cut some slack. Construction is one of the industries that need modified human resources laws to allow for the nature of contract feast and famine-type workloads.
Any advice to anyone setting up in business?
To start off, use your ears as much as possible to gather information, and speak to as many experienced people you can. After that, there’s no substitute for having a bucket load of two things – passion and determination.
The latter I consider as having the courage of your convictions. Others tell me this is me being stubborn, but the subtle difference is having the ability to recognise your bad decisions quickly and change your mind. A good mantra is: it doesn’t matter how many times you get knocked down, it’s how many times you get up.
The best thing about being in business in Jersey?
With the nature of our retail and trade businesses, it is not difficult to define your target markets and customers and communicate well with them. This isn’t just about marketing, it’s having the opportunity to engage with them more on a personal level. It is something I insist on doing regularly. On a less profound note, my ‘commuting’ to work all the way from Gorey takes about 12 minutes, so that’s another good thing !
And the most frustrating?
It’s the other side of the coin to the positive about being able to get to know customers in a small island. Because we are a small island with around 100,000 souls, the markets for our non-e-commerce businesses are finite. The costs of running a Jersey company are disproportionately higher than in the UK, but that’s the Jersey factor. And it’s a smallish price we pay for living and working in such a great island.
Family?
Married for 15 years to my rock, Dani, and we have son Thomas (12) and daughter Emily (9).
Interests outside work?
This is the ‘play hard’ bit that goes with working the same way, and my friends and family are extremely important to me. The only sport that remains is golf, which fits the ‘social’ bit nicely, especially as my son is now a member of the Royal Jersey Golf Club. He’s the latest in a golfing family, so we just need to convince Dani and Emily to take it up. I’m a long-suffering Wolverhampton Wanderers fan, and the other sports I still follow are boxing, rugby and cricket, annually going to England to watch a Test match. With some old friends and colleagues we formed an investment club a few years ago to ensure that we meet regularly, but I think our wives have now sussed out this is a social, dinning club!
Favourite way to unwind after a hard day at work?
At home, I’m good at disengaging the brain and going into ‘Dad’ mode and having fun with the kids. It’s a great leveller and reminds me of what’s important. And at weekends, as well as the odd ‘serious’ investment club meeting, either unwinding at home with Dani over a glass of red or going out for a meal together.
