IMF Praises Bahamian Regulatory Structure

by Amanda Banks, for LawAndTax-News.com, London

11 October 2004

In a recently released report, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) announced that the Bahamas has made significant progress towards implementing the Fund's recommendations and developing a more effective regulatory regime.

The report, entitled 'The Bahamas: Assessment of the Supervision and Regulation of the Financial Sector' observed that although the majority of the regulatory developments took place following the organisation's 2002 review of the jurisdiction, assessment and development is continuing in several areas.

The IMF also praised the efforts made by the Central Bank of the Bahamas and the Securities Commission of the Bahamas towards improving the regulatory environment for the financial services sector, noting:

"This process has placed a considerable burden on both the agencies themselves and on the private sector institutions that they regulate."

The IMF report went on to urge the Bahamian authorities to continue with the process of streamlining the regulatory environment, recommending "a consolidation of the reporting lines for regulatory authorities under the Ministry of Finance", and the completion of a "comprehensive review of the overall regulatory framework to determine the most efficient structure for the local environment".

Speaking last week following the release of the IMF report, chairman of the Bahamas Financial Services Board, Bruno Roberts announced that:

"The report reinforces the view that the Bahamas is a well-regulated jurisdiction and leading international financial centre in banking, private banking and asset management."

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