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Demerara Bank cuts ties with WIN candidates
…party alleges victimization, threatens to take legal action
…Bank says move made to ensure compliance with int’l financial sector rules governing relations with sanctioned individuals
(from left) WIN candidates, Duarte Hetsberger, Odessa Primus and Natasha Singh-Lewis
Kaieteur News – Several candidates from the We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) party, led by sanctioned businessman Azruddin Mohamed, have been informed by Demerara Bank Limited (DBL) that their accounts will be closed.
WIN officials are alleging that this move is politically motivated and say legal action is being considered.
At a press conference on Tuesday night, former Peoples National Congress Reform (PNC/R) parliamentarian Natasha Singh-Lewis and Duarte Hetsberger revealed they were among those affected. They said DBL notified them of the termination of services via email correspondence.
Singh-Lewis, a customer of the bank for over 15 years, said she received a call on Tuesday notifying her of an email that was sent a day earlier.
A letter addressed to her and seen by this publication, titled “Re: Discontinuation of Banking Services – Mrs. Natasha Singh-Lewis,” stated that all account maintenance services will be discontinued as of July 25, 2025.
“This decision was made in compliance with our internal policies and banking requirements. To ensure a smooth transition effective immediately, no further deposits will be accepted into your… if the accounts are not closed by July 25, 2025, we will close them automatically. Any remaining funds will be converted into a Banker’s Draft and held at the bank’s Camp & South Road Branch for your collection,” the letter read.
Singh-Lewis said she visited the bank and met with staff members. When she asked to see the policies referenced in the email, none were provided. She also spoke to a manager who similarly could not produce the relevant internal policies but advised her to visit the bank’s head office.
Instead, she consulted her attorney. “I was then advised that legal action will be taken in relation to the letter sent to me from the bank, because the bank has a license and has a responsibility to do business with all Guyanese and my service with them goes beyond 15 years. I have had 15 years and more of uninterrupted service with that bank, and suddenly today, I receive a letter to say that they will discontinue service with me, I found that very, very strange,” she said.
Hetsberger shared a similar experience. He said he received a call on Tuesday morning followed by an email identical in content to Singh-Lewis.
“I sought some clarity, but all they said that’s all they can say is the bank reserved the right, its internal policies, and I did not meet certain banking requirements, and that’s it, come and collect your bank draft and close shop,” Hetsberger said.
He later contacted other WIN candidates and learned that at least five had received similar notifications.
Both Singh-Lewis and Hetsberger confirmed they also have accounts with other financial institutions and that only DBL has taken this action. They insisted they had not violated any banking rules.
A copy of the letter sent to WIN candidate Natasha Singh-Lewis by Demerara Bank Limited
The WIN candidates questioned whether the move is linked to their affiliation with WIN a party founded by Mohamed, who was sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) for alleged gold smuggling.
WIN’s campaign manager Odessa Primus suggested that it could be “petty politics” initiated by the People’s Progressive Party – government.
In addition to Singh-Lewis signaling her intention to take legal action, Primus said the party is assessing whether to pursue collective legal recourse against DBL.
Primus noted WIN will be notifying international observers and the global community about what they consider victimization of their candidates.
She added that given this move by the local bank, all WIN members with accounts at DBL will now be closing them. “We will not be intimidated by any stretch of the imagination, and I understand that while the government loves power and what the feel of power means for them, our people will not be intimidated. We will stand together and we will stand strong, because this is a democracy…” she said.
Primus criticized what she called a contradiction between the ruling Peoples Progressive Party’s (PPP) public stance and its actions. “When we have all these entities that they have some degree of control [over] and is able to manipulate in some way, shape or form, being activated against people who are opposed to the government, and I would publicly like to say that these are the kinds of behaviors that they need to cease and desist from,” she stated.
Primus outlined that one of the main reasons, some WIN candidates have opted to stay anonymous is out of fear of political victimization. She also alleged that since the party’s List of Candidates was made public, PPP associates have been contacting WIN members to pressure them into removing their names from the party’s list.
To this end, she called on the government to stop its attempts at intimidation. Primus noted that the government’s actions are a response to the growing support WIN has been receiving nationwide. “You have 70 plus years of having a party, and in this day and age you have to go out your way to fight a party that existed for what two months, just over two months…” she added.
When asked whether the bank’s move might deter others from supporting WIN, Primus was firm, stating that the party remains undeterred. She underscored that the party will not fall prey to what she believes is PPP-orchestrated victimisation.
Meanwhile, efforts by Kaieteur News to contact DBL officials following WIN’s press conference were futile.
However, DBL’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Dowlat Parbhu told Demerara Waves Online News that the decision was made to ensure the bank complies with international financial sector rules governing relations with sanctioned individuals.
“I don’t think it should be unclear. If they had read all the provisions of international compliance legislation and protocol dealing with an individual that was sanctioned by OFAC (Office of Foreign Assets Control), then they should be very clear. If those who are interested go and read it, they will find the reason why Demerara Bank had to take such a decision,” he told Demerara Waves Online News.
He explained that the decision was taken in light of DBL’s risk assessment. Mr. Parbhu declined to say how many accounts had been affected by the decision “because that people’s personal information in a sense.”
“Anybody, who has a relationship that poses a compliance risk with the bank, we have an obligation under the AML (Anti-Money Laundering) legislation to take action and de-risk and that comes with international correspondent bank guidelines,” he added.
The DBL CEO said his financial institution was not obligated to report its decision to the Bank of Guyana.
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- Azruddin Mohamed, Demerara Bank, Duarte Hetsberger, Guyana Elections, Natasha Singh-Lewis, sanctioned, We Invest in Nationhood, win
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All the amerindian villages and CDC have their carbon fund account with demarara bank. Will they close these accounts too? I ask this because I kniw thousands of amerindians are voting for team mohamed come September 1. I now see why they ask each village to open an account this bank.