CL Financial shareholders welcome halt on Trincity Mall sale

Trinicity Mall.- File photo by Angelo Marcelle

BUSINESSMAN Carlton Reis, who controls a majority of the voting rights in CL Financial Ltd (CLF), has praised the government’s move to halt the controversial sale of the Trincity Commercial Centre Ltd (TCCL), calling it “the start of justice” and a long-overdue crackdown on “white-collar crime” in Trinidad and Tobago.

Reis, representative of Dalco, the largest CLF shareholder, said the government was finally taking meaningful action after years of mismanagement and alleged abuse during CLF’s liquidation.

He spoke with Newsday on October 15. On October 13, the government, through the Attorney General, was granted an injunction to stop the sale of TCCL, which includes Trincity Mall.

Justice Kevin Ramcharan, who has been overseeing the CLF liquidation since the company was wound up in 2017, granted the injunction after the state applied for urgent relief. The injunction halted the completion of the Trincity Mall sale just minutes before the deal was due to close.

Reis said the decision vindicated years of shareholder warnings about irregularities in the liquidation process. The government is CLF’s principal creditor, having injected $28 billion during the 2009-2012 bailout of the once-largest private conglomerate in TT before its 2009 collapse.

In 2017, then-finance minister Colm Imbert successfully petitioned the High Court to wind up CLF and the joint liquidators of the firm Grant Thornton were appointed in 2018, approved by the court.

“Yes, it is a start, and I’d like to see it follow through,” he said. “Our Attorney General has proven to be a man of integrity, one who will stand for justice.”

Reis revealed that Dalco had previously written to Police Commissioner Allister Guevarro, urging a criminal probe into the sale of CLF assets. While he has not received an official reply, he interpreted the commissioner’s directive for an investigation by the Anti-Corruption Investigation Bureau (ACIB) as an acknowledgement of his call for action.

“Now that the Attorney General has acted, I will take that as a response,” he said. “The next move should be to petition the court to remove this liquidator and re-establish a shareholders’ agreement so we can rebuild CL Financial and help grow the economy.”

Reis criticised what he described as years of “corporate dismantling” under state-appointed oversight. He argued that CLF’s assets, including Trincity Mall, No Man’s Land in Tobago, and other properties, were sold below value in a process that lacked transparency and accountability.

“They massacred the company – they chopped it up,” Reis said. “How could you take a mall worth so much and sell it for almost half the price? How could you sell Home Construction Limited land next to it to a one per cent group to build another mall?”

The mall was being sold for $505 million, a figure reportedly almost half the 2021 court-approved valuation of $900 million. The preferred bidder, Ansa McAl, allegedly withdrew before the mall was sold to a consortium including John Aboud, Anthony Rahael, Kallco Ltd, and Fides Ltd.

Reis also accused planning authorities of enabling questionable real estate approvals, describing it as “deeply disturbing.” He said his group had once proposed developing the Tobago site into a medical tourism and retirement hub, backed by Canadian insurers, to create high-value jobs and long-term foreign investment.

“It would have been perfect…A hospital, retirement homes, and tourism combined,” he said. “People love Tobago. It’s peaceful, and many retirees want to live here. That was our vision for sustainable development.”

Reis hopes for dialogue with the government and described the injunction’s timing – shortly before the 2025 national budget – as significant.

“I was expecting to hear something about CL Financial in the budget,” he said. “But when I saw the injunction came at 4.20 pm, I understood. They were waiting for that. Now we hope for talks with the Prime Minister, the Attorney General, and the Finance Minister so we can move forward together.”

Reis also hailed the April 28 general election victory of the United National Congress (UNC) under Kamla Persad-Bissessar, describing it as “a blessing to the nation” and a turning point for accountability and reform.

“It was like a breath of fresh air,” Reis said. “Now the country can look forward to rebuilding and growth, and CL Financial can play a key role in that.”

The High Court matter resumes on October 27, when the terms of the injunction are expected to be addressed.