Especially for start-ups, Savings Banks are academies, develop training courses,
a very reliable partner. They financed about and more. Some of these will also be
half of all start-ups in Germany and offered implemented through this project.
seminars for business owners, promotional
funds, venture capital and provide intensive Today, we are realizing a major milestone,
care during the first three years. This is that is, celebrating the launch of the MSME
because the risk of insolvency is very high, Competency Unit. For me personally, this
especially in the first few years after initial was a real experience of the merging of
start-up. This situation is not unique to two different cultures. When it comes to a
Germany, and the same obtains in Saint project, there are three important things
Lucia. in Germany, that is “planning, planning,
planning”. That means long-term planning. In
Savings Banks Foundation for International Saint Lucia, the approach is totally different:
Cooperation (Sparkassenstiftung für short-term planning and being spontaneous
Internationale Kooperation e.V.), my is acceptable. I realized once more “one plus
employer, is a subsidiary of the Sparkassen one is more than two”, when two different
Finance Groupe and supports savings and cultures come together.
retail banks around the globe, empowering
them to operate professionally and profitably The most important element of this journey
and to fulfil their social mandate. We are a was a supportive team focused on one clear
non-profit organization with approximately goal: the launch of the MSME Competency
300 employees and actually active in 50 Unit. For this we are excited, and will remain
countries all over the world. available to provide the support to 1 st National
Bank to continue being the first. We, SBFIC,
Our key objectives are the improvement of and I personally wish you Johnathan and
access to financial services, sharing know- your team all the best and hope to see many
how and the improvement of economic satisfied new MSME clients and a prosperous
framework conditions. We implement Saint Lucia.
Business Games, establish training
www.slyoumag.com | February - April 2020
SL-YOU | It’s All About Business 63