Learn more about our Board of Directors that chart the course of Commonwealth Bank, the “Leader in Personal Banking Services”.
Mr. Sands is the fourth Bahamian in Commonwealth Bank’s sixty-one (61) year history to be named Chairman of the Board of Directors. A seasoned and highly regarded banking executive, Mr. Sands’ career incorporates more than fifty (50) years of banking experience. He has served in various senior management and executive leadership roles in both Grand Bahama and New Providence before being named President and Chief Executive Officer in 1997. Mr. Sands is a graduate of the University of Western Ontario and Richard Ivey Business School and has been a member of the Board of Directors of Commonwealth Bank since 1990. He was named Bahamas Financial Services Board (BFSB) Executive of the Year in 2004.
Mrs. Turnquest recently served as the Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at Commonwealth Bank and has been a member of the Bank’s Executive Management Team for the past 15 years. She has over 36 years of banking experience including commercial and retail banking in The Bahamas and abroad. Mrs. Turnquest is a Chartered Banker, a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and has an Honours Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Administration from the prestigious Ivey School of Business, The University of Western Ontario. She has also completed the Ivey Executive Program, the Canadian Securities Certification and is a recent alumni of the Harvard Business School having completed the Program for Leadership Development. Mrs. Turnquest was the 2015 recipient of the coveted Bahamas Financial Services Board Executive of the Year Award.
Mrs. Earla Bethel is President and Chief Executive of DanBrad McDonald’s. She is a former President of the Zonta Club of Nassau, and was named Zontian of the Year in 1992. Mrs. Bethel is also a member of the International Women’s Forum. She was one of the founders of the AIDS Foundation in 1992, and was awarded the Red Cross Service Award in 1996. Mrs. Bethel was elected to the Board of Directors of Commonwealth Bank in 2000.
Mr. Larry Gibson is Vice President of Atlantic Pension Services, a Nassau-based international pension fund management firm. A former managing director of Colina Financial Advisors, Mr. Gibson's career in finance has spanned more than 20 years and includes capital markets, wealth management and intensive involvement in legislation and policy affecting national economic issues. Mr. Gibson is also a founding member of The Bahamas Financial Services Board (BFSB), the former chairman of the Securities Market Task Force, a founding board member of the Bahamas International Securities Exchange (BISX) and the second inductee into the College of The Bahamas Hall of Fame. He has served as chairman and board member of the Bahamas Development Bank and his interest in education has led him to board positions at both the Hopedale Centre for students with special needs and gifts, and St. Andrews School.
Mr. Vaughan Higgs joined the family business, Nassau Paper Company Ltd., in 1967 and is now Vice President and General Manager. Mr. Higgs is a director of several Bahamian companies including New Providence Traders Ltd., Y-II Shipping Co. Ltd., Flagship Business Forms Ltd., Parliament Properties Ltd., and Galleria Cinemas Ltd. He has been on the Board of Directors of Commonwealth Bank since 1994.
Mr Knowles serves as a director of the board at Commonwealth Bank, having previously served on the KPMG Advisory Board overseeing a dozen countries. He received his formal accountancy training at the Financial Training Center of London, England. Mr Knowles has more then 40 years of experience in the financial industry of The Bahamas. He formerly held the positions of senior partner at KPMG Bahamas, Head of Tax at KPMG Bahamas, and was the Bahamas representative for the Institute of Chartered Accountants of England and Wales. He is a licensed practitioner of the Bahamas Institute of Chartered Accountants, and is an active member of the Rotary Club of South East Nassau.
Mr. Russell Miller is the Executive Vice-President of Hotel Operations at Atlantis Paradise Island and also serves as President of The Bahamas Hotel Employers Association. Well known in the industry, he is a seasoned hotelier with over thirty years of local and international experience at high-end luxury resorts. He holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Hotel Administration from Cornell University.
Mr. Robert Sands is an award winning hotelier with a distinguished international career in the hospitality industry. He is the Senior Vice President of Administration and External Relations at Baha Mar Ltd. In this role, he assumed responsibility for the development and execution of Baha Mar's corporate outreach initiatives, all government and external affairs, industrial relations and human capital programs. Mr. Sands currently serves as Honorary Council to Japan and has extensive Directorship experience, participating on a number of Boards including the Bahamas International Security Exchange (BISX).
Mr. Symonette has diverse holdings in real estate, financial and commercial ventures throughout The Bahamas. He is Chairman of Abaco Markets Ltd., and serves on the Board of Directors of several Bahamian companies including Bahamas Fast Ferries. He is President of Freeport Feeder Ltd. And Inter-Island Shipping Co. He has served on the Board of Directors of Commonwealth Bank a total of 18 years.
Mrs. Symonette is a Certified Public Accountant and a member of The Bahamas Institute of Chartered Accountants (BICA). She worked in public accounting for several years before venturing into the private sector spending many years as the Chief Financial Officer of Super Value Food Stores Limited, where she now holds the position of President. Mrs. Symonette served on the Tax and Continued Professional Education Committees of BICA, is a former member of the Board for Junior Achievement Bahamas, and a former volunteer of Project Read.