Celebrating 10 Years of Trust

BTG Trust and Corporate Services was incorporated and registered as a Management Company with the Financial Services Commission of Mauritius in 2013. Since then, it has been growing steadily under the stable leadership of Richard Muddimer, Boris Pelegrin and Bavita Jankee Persand.

As we are preparing to celebrate our 10th anniversary this evening, we thought it would be good to hear from our Managing Director, Bavita, on how she has seen BTG grow and flourish over the last ten years.?

Bavita, you have been with BTG since the inception. Can you tell us a little bit about the early days and what the driving factors were that inspired you (and Boris) to start a Management Company in Mauritius?

The start of the journey was not an easy one, as we only had a handful of clients and had to build up the client base. We initially started with 3 employees – Boris, one administrator and me – and gradually we grew both the database of clients and staff count.

Boris and I had been working for the same company prior to starting the journey with BTG, and were approached by Richard Muddimer, the founder of the company, to set up BTG as a Management Company and join in as board members. Given that Boris had the South African knowledge and expertise, and I had the local industry network and experience, it made us a strong pairing to start the journey.

Many new businesses don’t survive the first 5 years, so celebrating 10 years is a huge achievement. What were the challenges BTG faced in the beginning and how did you manage to mitigate those challenges?

Oh, that’s a good question! We had a number of challenges in the early days, starting with recruitment and staff turnover to taking on clients. Determination and a consistent delivery of good service to our clients helped us to bring new clients in and also recruit quality staff for the long term.

Our healthy organization started with the incorporation of core human values, such as trust, integrity, empathy, and teamwork. I have always tried my best to offer employees a better business, with a flexible work culture and the perfect learning atmosphere.

BTG has grown in leaps and bounds in the last decade and now boasts a large client roster and a staff of more than 25 in the Mauritian office, with several professionals overseas. What do you envisage for the company over the next ten years, and how do you plan to achieve it?

Our vision is still to remain a “boutique” Management Company, which is service driven. We are more focused on providing a personal value-added service to our clients, rather than just a bill at the end of the year. I can confidently say that BTG is going to go very far in the next 10 years, with new clients being onboarded and a greater delivery of professional services.

BTG values expert insight, integrity, empathy, and passion in all aspects of relationships – both with clients and staff. What would you say is BTG’s secret to achieving these values and building trust in the long term?

Integrity and trust are the glue that keep relationships together, and I think that I have always been very transparent with my investors, partners and employees. For me, trust has two parts – one is the ability to trust others and the other is being trustworthy oneself. In order to run a successful business, it is important to have both sides together.

We have the most reliable, trustworthy employees who are a pleasure to work with. As a Manager, I find the best way to do things is through a deep understanding of the needs and aspirations of each employee, which can be achieved by carefully balancing performance and the demands of the job with compassion and an understanding of each employee.

You must’ve learnt quite a few valuable lessons along the way. What advice would you give to aspiring entrepreneurs who are looking to enter the financial services industry in Mauritius?

I'm convinced that about half of what separates successful entrepreneurs from the non-successful ones is pure perseverance. Having perseverance and not being afraid to fail and make mistakes are key to any successful venture.

We are so proud to be celebrating a decade in the financial services sector and look forward to an exciting next ten years for BTG!