Gibtelecom officially inaugurated its new headquarters at John Mackintosh Square at a reception held on the evening of Tuesday 8 December 2009.

The building was officially opened by Gibtelecom Chairman and Minister for Enterprise, Development, Technology and Transport, the Hon. Joe Holliday who expressed his confidence that “Gibtelecom’s building will help the Company to provide an even better service to customers by offering a state-of-the-art one stop shop, conveniently located in the centre of town.” Mr Holliday was joined by Bojan Dremelj, the President of Telekom Slovenije, in inaugurating the new building.

The building runs over six levels and occupies a total area of approximately 1,300 square metres and contains over 15kms of cabling. The CEO, Tim Bristow said that “the new building had been designed in keeping with the surroundings, embellishing the Piazza by constructing a modern structure whilst replicating the old façade.” The building houses many of the Company’s departments such as Information Technology, Wireless Technologies and Sales and Marketing, as well as providing a Customer Services Centre with multi-tasked agents trained to help customers with all their communications needs – ranging from purchasing services through to simply paying a bill. “There are also many benefits for Gibtelecom from having these new premises adjoining the Haven and City Hall” said Tim Bristow “as much of the Company’s fixed line and internet technologies are located in these premises.”

The laying of foundations for the premises commenced in 2006 with a time capsule containing telecommunication equipment and documentation being buried there so that a future generation can track the development of telecommunications in Gibraltar over the 20th century and into the 21st. The architects for the building were WRSM Architects and Planning Consultants and the project manager was M J Hassan and Co, with the main construction being undertaken by Casias, the Portuguese business with a base in Gibraltar. This building was completed at the turn of this year.

Verralls Barristers and Solicitors would like to advise that they have moved offices from Montagu Pavillion and can now be found at 2B Centre Plaza, Horse Barrack Lane, Gibraltar.
Alternatively you can contact us by telephone on 200 47252, fax 200 72789 or email us at office@verralls.gi

James Levy QC, Senior Partner at leading law firm Hassans, announced last night at the firms 70th Anniversary Staff Cocktail Party at the Caleta Hotel, the launch of the ‘Sir Joshua Hassan Lectures’.

The lectures, in memory of Mr Levy’s uncle Sir Joshua Hassan, the longest serving Chief Minister of Gibraltar and founder of the firm, will take place annually around Spring time. The lectures will be held in Gibraltar and will be presented by a leading figure/VIP on issues pertinent to Gibraltar.

The first lecture will be presented by the Rt Hon Michael Howard QC MP. The selection, by the partners of Hassans of Mr Howard as our first speaker is regarded as especially appropriate given Mr Howard’s credentials, like Sir Joshua, as both a politician and lawyer.

The lectures will kick start our countdown to the firm’s 75th Anniversary Event which we hope will mark a milestone in celebrating its success and growth.

Hassans was the first firm in Gibraltar to break away from the traditional, and usually closed, family based firm. Hassans opened its doors to legal practitioners from varied backgrounds, providing an environment in which hard work and merit form the basis of advancement and recognition.

Mr Levy commented “I am extremely proud to lead such an exceptional team of people. I would like to take this opportunity to thank our clients, staff, suppliers and press for their loyalty and support and we look forward to working together with them all in the years ahead”.

Bank staff gathered at the entrance of the new NatWest branch in Corral Road for the formal opening of the premises.

NatWest’s longest serving employee and Senior Bank Manager, Gillian Balban, cut the ribbon with to officially open the branch. She was joined by senior management including Marvin Cartwright, Regional Manager for Gibraltar and Jeff Williams, Head of Retail branches, NatWest offshore, who had travelled to Gibraltar for the occasion.

NatWest is now the only bank in Gibraltar with two full-service branches for its customers. The new branch has been enhanced with a quick deposit till and access has been made easier for those customers using wheelchairs. A number of further improvements will be introduced in 2010.

At the time of the opening Marvin Cartwright, Regional Manager and Head of Corporate Banking in Gibraltar, told B2B: ‘We are delighted with the new NatWest branch and look forward to welcoming both NatWest and former RBS International customers here to do their banking. This represents a significant investment by our Group in Gibraltar following the recent expansion of our Line Wall Road branch and installation of four more ATM’s around the Rock.”
Gillian Balban added: “Through an enhanced presence in Gibraltar we will be better placed to serve the needs of customers and the community as a whole. Led by branch manager, Abigail Garcia, the whole team are here to give an excellent personal service. We also aim to offer the latest in automated and online services to customers. It’s an exciting move for all of us and the first of a number of service and product improvements that we plan to introduce in the coming months.”

Gibtelecom, the leading telecommunications provider in Gibraltar, and Interoute, owner operator of a state of the art European next generation network, have deployed an alternative telecommunications route to Gibraltar, offering high capacity connectivity between the Rock and the rest of Europe.

The new Point of Presence (PoP) will give users and businesses in Gibraltar additional resilient access to Europe via Interoute’s technologically advanced pan European network. Moreover, the fibre optic network offers virtually unlimited capacity to support further growth in Gibraltar. This new route complements Gibtelecom’s existing international routes, including via Telefonica and Cable & Wireless, and will provide further communications resilience for Gibraltar.
Gareth Williams, CEO, Interoute, states, “Gibraltar’s position makes it the natural hub for international businesses looking for easy access to Europe and Africa. Gibraltar has created a successful financial services and ecommerce sector which depend on first class communications. Consequently, we’ve seen an increasing demand from our customers to provide high capacity access to the region and we’re delighted to be able to partner with Gibtelecom and connect to their fibre optic network.”
Tim Bristow, CEO, Gibtelecom, said, “By partnering with Interoute, we bring businesses in Gibraltar access to a European next generation network and the 25 European countries that it crosses. Gibraltar has witnessed a substantial surge in demand for network access, and through Gibtelecom financing the construction of this new link businesses are guaranteed enhanced connectivity, now and in the future.”

Today Gibtelecom’s CEO signed an agreement, together with Diego Matas Morilla, Director General of Interoute’s Madrid Office, confirming that Gibtelecom and Interoute are now in a position to launch this new link and jointly market the services following the successful trialling of the new route.

Hassans International Law Firm has been named “Best Gibraltar Law Firm” at the Fund Domicile Awards that took place at the Chesterfield Hotel in London on the 14th January 2010. This award is recognition of the prominence the firm plays in the fund industry in Gibraltar. The event, hosted by Fund Domcile.com was well attended and followed a full days’ conference on the issues pertinent to the offshore fund industry.

The winners were selected as a result of a two stage procedure. Award winners were selected as a result of votes received as well as being based on the views of a panel of judges. A total of 223 votes were cast for 115 service providers in 14 domiciles.
Members of the judging panel were:
Grant Fuller, Managing Director, Axicorda; Christi Gujral, Chief Operating Officer, Zan Partners; Dallas McGillvray, Managing Director, FM Consult Ltd; Paul O’Donnell, Managing Director, The Canonbury Group and Simon Osborn, Editor, International Fund Investment. The panel was chosen as a result of their independence, knowledge of fund service provision and the many years of experience that they all have had dealing with organisations in the fund domiciles.
James Lasry (pictured right, receiving the award), partner and Head of Funds at Hassans said “I am delighted Hassans has been recognised as Gibraltar’s best law firm for funds. Our Funds Team has worked very hard over the years to develop Gibraltar as a jurisdiction of choice.”