THE National Commercial Bank (NCB) won five of eight possible awards at the Jamaica Stock Exchange’s Sixth Best Practices Awards Banquet Wednesday night.

NCB walked away with awards for Annual Report, Corporate Disclosure and Investor Relations, Website Stockbrokerage, PSOJ/JSE Award for Corporate Governance and the coveted Governor General’s Award for Excellence at the banquet held at the Jamaica Pegasus hotel.

Nineteen awards were presented as a result of ties for first and second places.

Sagicor Jamaica and Sagicor Life Jamaica tied for second place for the Corporate Disclosure and Investor Relations behind NCB and PanCaribbean Financial Services Limited, which tied for first place.

PanCaribbean Financial Services also tied with Barita Investments Limited for first place for the Investor Relations Awards (Stockbrokerage). There was also a tie in first place between Guardian Holdings Limited and Capital and Credit Financial Group Limited for the Website for Listed Companies award.

Chairman of the Best Practices Awards Committee, Professor Neville Ying, said the four ties show that companies are serious about ensuring they meet and exceed international standards and can compete in the international arena. “Every year they refine their product, services and organisation to ensure that they keep up with international standards. Therefore it is getting more difficult to separate most companies,” Ying said. He added that most times companies’ scores are separated by very small margins.

Marlene Street-Forrest, general manager of the JSE, said the Best Practices Awards are intended to assist companies in focusing on areas within their organisations that will enable them to improve practices and processes and ultimately drive corporate growth and long-term profitability. She said investors also pay attention to the awards.

Members of the awards selection committee included Alvaro Casserly, Dr Nsombi Jaja, Sushil Jain, Dr Brian Langrin, Christopher Bovell, Dr Noel Reynolds, Greta Bogues, Marlene Street-Forrest, Rezworth Burchenson and Neville Ellis.

2009 winners

Governor General’s Award

National Commercial Bank (NCB)

Annual Report

1st – NCB

2nd – PanCaribbean Financial Services Limited (PCFS)

3rd – Jamaica Money Market Brokers (JMMB)

Corporate Disclosure/Investor Relations

1st – NCB/PCFS

2nd – Sagicor Jamaica and Sagicor Life Jamaica (tie)

Best Performing Company

1st – First Jamaica Investments Limited (FJIL)

2nd- Carreras Group Limited

3rd – Salada Foods Limited

Investor Relations (Stockbrokerage)

1st – Barita Investments Limited and PCFS (tie)

2nd – Mayberry Investments Limited

Website Brokerages

1st – NCB Capital Markets

2nd – First Global Investments Limited

3rd – Scotia DBG Investments Limited

Website Listed Companies

1st -Trinidad Cement Limited

2nd – Guardian Holdings Limited and Capital and Credit Financial Group (tie)

PSOJ/JSE award for Corporate Governance

1st – NCB

2nd – Sagicor Life

3rd – Scotia Group