Bank of Baroda records financial successes after mulling closure

Last Updated on Friday, 6 November 2026, 21:35 by Written By Denis Chabrol

Six years after Bank of Baroda had planned to shut down operations in Guyana, that India-headquartered commercial bank is recording major financial success.

Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Bank of Baroda, Debedatta Chand told the official opening of its new headquarters building at Carmichael and Quamina Streets, Georgetown that the financial institution’s total business has grown from GY$28.7 billion in 2022-23 to over GY$51.2 billion in 2025-26, registering growth of nearly 29% in the latest financial year.

He said Bank of Baroda’s deposits have increased by over 31%, while advances have grown by more than 22%. In terns of revenue, Mr Chand said the bank’s net profit has reached GY$774 million. Equally encouraging, he said, was the significant improvement in the bank’s asset quality, with non-performing assets declining from GY$314 million to just GY$38 million.\

In his address, President Irfaan Ali recalled that shortly after winning the 2020 general and regional elections, he had been confronted with the Bank of Baroda’s decision to fold operations here. He said he eventually convinced that bank to remain in Guyana. “ I’m much happier standing here launching this new headquarters with you than just six years ago in 2020, listening to you wanting to exit the market.; completely different day to day,” he said. 

He challenged Bank of Baroda to leverage more of its parent or global capital in Guyana’s market, where that national figures show non-performing loans declined to abut 1.3 percent of total loans. “This is a particularly encouraging indicator. It speaks to the overall quality of lending, the repayment capacity of borrowers, and the resilience of our financial system and fourth, credit expansion has been strong,” he said. Dr Ali also said private sector credit grew by approximately 19 percent last year, reflecting increased demand for financing across the economy. He said during the first six months of 2026, domestic credit expanded by 15.5 percent, private sector credit increased by 11.5 percent, real estate mortgages expanded by 21.2 percent, while lending to businesses in the services sector grew by 8.1 percent. “These are year-upon-year numbers. The base year is changing. This is not a base year of a low number to today’s number,” he said.

Looking ahead, the  CEO appeared upbeat about Guyana’s economic transformation, saying the rapid development of the oil and gas sector, together with investments in infrastructure, agriculture, renewable energy and small businesses, is creating tremendous opportunities for the country. “We see significant potential for the banking sector to contribute to this transformation, and Bank of Baroda wants to be an active participant in Guyana’s growth story,” he said.

Mr Chand said Bank of Baroda would be focussing on strengthening its existing banking services while introducing a wider range of products and services suited to the requirements of Guyanese customers and businesses. The plans, he said, include enhancing digital banking, mobile and internet banking, card services, trade finance, remittances and convenient payment solutions.

While Mr Chand said “there was a period when our business volumes were modest and the future of our operations required careful consideration,” he said Bank of Baroda was encouraged to remain in Guyana and since then business had become buoyant, causing the bank to move into new premises that are more spacious, accessible and customer-friendly environment. “The objective behind this move is not simply to have better premises. It is to provide greater convenience to customers, create a professional working environment for employees, improve operational efficiency and strengthen our capacity to serve the growing needs of Guyana,” he said.