Mr. Richie Boucher:

Our SVR is designed to be competitive in the marketplace. It is our desire to continue to grow our business. To do so, we need to cover the capital we deploy, potential loan losses as well as costs and overheads. Our current rate is competitive as evidenced by the flow of business we are getting. Our rate is not the only criterion but also the terms and conditions of our mortgages. Our products are designed as such that they are commercially sensible for the bank but also help in growing a long-term franchise.

I cannot predict where mortgage rates will move. The primary driver of mortgage rates in our case is the cost of the raw materials – money – to us. We also try to provide different ranges of products to customers including fixed-rate products which allow people to protect themselves from further interest rate rises.