CL Financial – before its financial breakdown that became evident after a liquidity crisis and government intervention in 2009 – was the largest privately held conglomerate in Trinidad and Tobago and one of the largest privately held corporations in the entire Caribbean. Founded as an insurance company, Colonial Life Insurance Company (CLICO) by Cyril Duprey, it was expanded into a diversified company by his nephew, Lawrence Duprey. CL Financial then became one of the largest local conglomerates in the region, encompassing over 65 companies in 32 countries worldwide with total assets exceeding US$100 billion.
However, CL Financial experienced a liquidity crisis that resulted in a "bail out" agreement by which the government of Trinidad and Tobago loaned the company funds ($7.3 billion as of December 2010) to maintain its ability to operate, and obtained a majority of seats on the company's board of directors. As of late 2010, the company remained in a tenuous position amid tense negotiations with the government, and as of February 2011, the company's web site (www.clfinancial.com) was no longer functioning.
CL Financial started out as a holding company for Colonial Life Insurance Company (Trinidad) Limited (Clico) in 1993.
Read more about CL Financial: 2009 Liquidity Crisis, Holdings
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