IMF To Assess Bahamas' Financial Services Sector

Mandy Robinson, Tax-news.com, London

11 October 2000

The Bahamas Government is confident it can put into place the remaining legislation and regulations necessary to ensure that the Bahamas fully complies with international standards as requested by the FATF. This is the message from the Bahamas' Prime Minister, Hubert A Ingraham, last weekend in response to the FATF meeting which concluded on Friday 6 October. Indeed, says Prime Minister Ingraham, he has requested an assessment of its financial services sector by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and intends to publish the results for international scrutiny.

At the conference, the FATF announced the Bahamas as one of seven jurisdictions, out of the total of fifteen, to have made "very encouraging" steps in its efforts to be removed from the FATF's blacklist of uncooperative tax havens in the fight against money laundering, and align itself with more internationally accepted regulations.

Since its inclusion on the list in June, the Bahamas has enacted the Money Laundering (Proceeds of Crime) (Amendment) Act 2000, the Evidence (Proceedings in other Jurisdictions) Act 2000 and the Evidence (Proceedings in other Jurisdictions) (Amendment) Act 2000, and has also proposed other new or amended bills.

Currently, Prime Minister Ingraham is in Europe where he heads a delegation comprising key members of his cabinet. The aim of the visit is to speak to government, private sector officials and the leaders of the OECD and FATF in order to reassure the international community of his country's endeavours to restore the Bahmas as a reputable and major finance centre in the Caribbean.

Speaking from Amsterdam, last weekend, Mr Ingraham issued a press release in which he stated that the IMF has agreed to his request to perfoming an independent review and assessment of the Bahamas financial services sector. In the statement the Prime Minister said 'the IMF has indicated its agreement to undertake the assessment which is to be scheduled for early in the coming year.'

Although the seven jursidictions have made significant progress, the FATF has said it has no plans to amend the blacklist until early next year, when it decides whether the seven should be removed. FATF president Jose Maria Roldan has stated: 'We are generally pleased with the positive steps taken by many jurisdictions named in June as non-cooperative. It remains, however, that premature to remove any from that list.'

Mr Ingraham and his delegation conclude their mission in London this week, when he will officially open the Bahamas Maritime Authority offices, and speak with the UK's Financial Services Authority and with the heads of British banking institutions operating in the Bahamas.

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