Senson Group Ltd, established in 2012 in the Turks and Caicos Islands, was founded to address the pressing need for accessible capital for Caribbean businesses struggling with traditional financing barriers. Starting as a licensed financial services company providing small loans, Senson expanded into mortgage lending and later into financial brokerage. With a background in law, the founder’s entrepreneurial drive and understanding of both legal and financial frameworks fuel Senson’s mission to help businesses secure vital funding.
Senson’s approach prioritizes risk management, aligning closely with client goals through transparent processes and success-based fees. By requiring projects to be well-prepared with approvals and feasibility studies, Senson ensures viability and smooth progression. They also leverage partnerships with external brokers and consultants to access diverse funding sources internationally, ensuring the most suitable financial solutions for each project. Through rigorous adherence to financial regulations and client due diligence, Senson Group continues to support sustainable business growth across the Caribbean.
Origins and Mission of Senson Group Ltd
We started the interview by asking, “Tell us about Senson Group Ltd and how it began?”
Perez E Rolle replied, “We started in April 2012 in the Turks and Caicos Islands, a British Overseas Territory when we realized that local businesses were finding it very difficult to access capital from financial institutions in the Caribbean. Originally, we started with being a licensed financial services company offering small loans, then branched into mortgages deploying our own capital and progressed into a licensed financial brokerage firm.”
Transitioning from Law to Finance
The Worlds Times: We understand you have a law degree, what made you decide to get into the financial world?
Perez E Rolle replied, “At the core of it all, I am an entrepreneur. Access to capital is the number one hindrance for businesses in the Caribbean and that is why I am so passionate about raising capital. Law and finance are the basis of much of the work I do as CEO; between reviewing the client projects, their Power-Purchase-Agreements (PPAs), the contracts, the terms sheets and many other such documents are processes having a background in law and finance has been helpful.”
Effective Loan Repayment Strategies
The Worlds Times: What strategies have you found most effective in guiding borrowers to ensure timely loan repayments?
Perez E Rolle replied, “We review the client’s financials and their cash flow, to determine whether they are able to successfully repay the loan. At times, we will include the interest for the period up to which we believe the project can sustain the loan.”
Overcoming Challenges
The Worlds Times: Can you describe a challenging project you have managed across the Caribbean and how you overcame obstacles?
Perez E Rolle replied, “We have found that when a client has a development project in the Caribbean, they use their personal funds to immediately start building. In doing so, many times they are unable to complete the project themselves. We have been approached by many developers who have started projects but not completed them. When we manage to find a lender willing to provide the financing, many lenders require matching contribution or advance fees for due diligence and the clients have not been able to provide this because all their liquid cash has been used in getting the projects off the ground. We have been able to overcome this challenge by finding equity partners who are interested in the project. They provide the matching contribution, which in turn triggers the debt that we find. We also face challenges where our clients have great projects but no money to pay the soft cost required to get the project documents together. Sometimes the project debt and equity are put together, but they require a small investment to acquire the land. This is currently the hold-up for two of our major projects in top tourism destinations in the Caribbean.”
Approach to Mortgage Risk Management
The Worlds Times: How does Senson Group approach risk management in its mortgage portfolio?
Perez E Rolle replied, “With projects that we finance ourselves, our loan to value [LTV] is between 50% to 60%, this allows us to be protected in the event there is a default. However, we are involved with the client at every stage of the project to ensure they have the adequate amount of financing in place to complete the project, reviewing their cash outlay at every step and refinancing if and when needed as the project continues.”
Evaluating Project Success
The Worlds Times: What criteria do you use to evaluate the success of a financing project?
Perez E Rolle replied, “Projects brought to us must be shovel ready, as in, they need to have all the governmental approvals in place, environmental studies completed, architectural plans completed and most importantly a feasibility study completed which shows whether or not the project is feasible. We do not take on early-stage developments unless all the plans and approvals are in place.”
Aligning Client Goals
The Worlds Times: How do you ensure alignment between the client’s goals and the services provided by Senson Group?
Perez E Rolle replied, “We are transparent with our clients about the process and requirements. We appropriately manage their expectations. Additionally, many clients do not have the funds to pay for advance consultancy fees. We therefore decided to assist our clients by only charging a success fee for the successful funding of their project. We believe this helps tremendously by easing the upfront capital required for our clients. Moreover, we assist clients with properly structuring their offering to potential equity groups or lenders which helps tremendously in them being successful and reaching their funding goals.”
Process of Securing Real Estate Funding
The Worlds Times: Could you walk me through the process of securing funding for international real estate projects?
Perez E Rolle replied, “We would first meet with the client on a zoom call to understand their project better. Once we believe that their project is feasible, we will have them sign a non-circumvent non-disclosure agreement (NCNDA) and fee agreement. These documents ensure that the client does not circumvent us and contact any of the people or entities we have introduced them to. It also ensures that their information remains confidential. We do not charge any upfront fees. We then create a virtual data room (VDR). The VDR is a group of various folders that has information on the project that requires funding. If it is a resort project, it will have information on the due diligence for the sponsor, environmental studies, planning approvals and architectural plans, financial projections, appraisals, and other such documents required for the lender or potential equity partner to make a qualified decision.”
Role of External Consultants
The Worlds Times: What role do external consultants play in the success of Senson Group’s business projects?
Perez E Rolle replied, “We normally charge a fee that covers our external financial brokers, advisors and consultants. It is not always that a project gets funded within our network, many times we must engage other brokers internationally to get a project funded. For example, a project in Maldives for resort development will be better placed in the Middle East as opposed to the North American markets. For jurisdictions such as these, we will need our broker partners in the Middle East. We also, for example, have broker partners in the Middle East that work specifically with equity in projects as their personal beliefs restrict them on debt financing. We have external consultants that specialize in feasibility studies, resort development, marketing, and other such fields required to get the project documents in place for funding.”
Staying Updated on Financial Regulations
Lastly we asked, “How do you stay updated on financial regulations and trends that may impact your consulting services?”
“Being a licensed financial services company and a licensed financial brokerage, we remain up to date on the financial regulations for both our jurisdiction and internationally. We require due diligence on each of our clients, our lender and equity groups to ensure source of funds are from legitimate sources. The implementation of The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) by the United States adversely affected international financing in and for the Caribbean. Pre-FATCA it was easier to access financing for offshore jurisdictions like ours. Our firm follows the guidelines set by the Turks & Caicos Financial Services Commission under the Anti-Money Laundering and Prevention of Terrorist Financing Regulations (AMLPTF).” Perez E Rolle Concluded
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