Bahamas News

Bahamas PM Encourages Commonwealth Law Delegates to Maintain Legitimacy of Group’s Financial Systems

Published

7 years ago

October 19, 2017

#Bahamas, October 19, 2017 – Nassau – Prime Minister, Dr. the Hon. Hubert A. Minnis told Commonwealth Attorneys-General, Law Ministers and Senior Officials that they must continue to safeguard the grouping’s legitimate financial systems from abuse.

Addressing the Opening Session of the Meeting of Commonwealth Law Ministers and Senior Officials, which got underway Monday at Baha Mar Resort, Prime Minister Minnis said the fact that all of the Commonwealth Countries now operate in an increasingly interconnected and globalized world, brings certain challenges with it for the grouping’s “legitimate financial systems.” The Meetings conclude on Thursday, October 19, 2017.

“We are connected by global financial and trade systems and by technologies which facilitate instantaneous communications, monetary transfers and other transactions,” Prime Minister Minnis said.

“These technologies and transactions often defy the very notion of borders between States. This connectivity has also exposed us to the spectre of transnational crime, and to individuals who would use our legitimate financial systems to launder criminal proceeds and to finance groups and entities who would seek to destabilize these systems and our countries.”

Prime Minister Minnis challenged officials to continue to work within the framework of the international policies and standards set by multinational institutions such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), and the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) to safeguard against the abuse of the group’s financial institutions.

Prime Minister Minnis said there is quite a bit Commonwealth countries can accomplish as a group, to level the playing field and to keep countries on the cutting-edge of legal responses to these threats.

“In this regard, the work of the Secretariat in producing the ‘Revised Common Law Legal Systems Model Provisions on Money Laundering; Terrorist Financing; Preventive Measures and the Proceeds of Crime’ is to be commended. “Its provisions can be adopted to fill various gaps or deficiencies in national legislation,” Prime Minister Minnis said.

These model legislative provisions relating to money laundering, terrorism financing, proceeds of crime, civil forfeiture and sanctions are the outcome of a collaboration between the Commonwealth Secretariat, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).

The model provisions form a starting point for states to evaluate the measures that should be incorporated into their domestic law to prevent, detect and effectively sanction money laundering and terrorism financing and to recover the proceeds of crime, with the overall objective of maintaining compliance with the revised Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Recommendations.

By: Matt Maura (BIS)

Photo caption: Prime Minister Minnis, addressing Commonwealth Law Ministers Meeting (CLMM) Opening Ceremony at Baha Mar on Monday, October 16, 2017. (BIS Photo/Peter Ramsay)

Bahamas News

Bahamas economic growth

Published

2 days ago

May 4, 2024

Shanieka

Rashaed Esson

Staff Writer

The Bahamas’ economy is in good standing according to reports from the Bahamas National Statistical Institute which released the Quarterly Gross Domestic Product Series. They indicate that quarterly GDP trends for 2023 saw increases compared to 2022, a sign of recovery from the Covid 19 pandemic.

The most significant increase was 9.9 percent in the first quarter of 2023, and the industries responsible for the growth include Accommodations and food, construction and Arts.

Bahamas News

RBC appoints new Country Manager and Area Vice President for Turks & Caicos

Published

3 days ago

May 4, 2024

Shanieka

RBC Royal Bank (Bahamas) Limited (“RBC”) is pleased to announce the recent appointment of Kerryl-Lyn King-Henry as Country Manager and Area Vice President (“AVP”), Personal and Commercial Banking, Turks & Caicos Islands (TCI).

In her new role as Country Manager and AVP, King-Henry will take on full responsibility for the bank’s operations, strategy, and development in the TCI market, with a strong focus on solidifying partnerships with the Government, regulatory bodies, and the local community.

King-Henry brings to the role a dynamism influenced by nearly 25 years of industry experience. Prior to her new appointment, she served as AVP of Business Banking in Trinidad and Tobago. She has held progressively senior roles within both personal and commercial banking, as well as various functional units.

King-Henry holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree, with a specialization in Leadership, FinTech and Big Data Analysis, in addition to a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration. Further enriching her professional profile, Kerryl-Lyn is a certified John C. Maxwell Coach, Trainer, Teacher, and Speaker. Her passion for leadership and development is matched by her commitment to community service, as she actively volunteers her time and leverages her professional expertise to mentor and support others. “

Kerryl-Lyn’s extensive experience and proven leadership capabilities make her the perfect choice to lead our operations in the Turks & Caicos Islands,” said Ericka Rolle, RBC’s Managing Director and Vice President, Personal Banking, The Bahamas and TCI.

“Her commitment to excellence, combined with a genuine passion for community engagement, aligns perfectly with our Bank’s purpose of helping clients thrive and communities prosper. We are excited to see the positive impact she will undoubtedly bring to her new role,” she added.

Bahamas News

Get your laugh on, March On show coming to Turks and Caicos with box office at IGA Friday and Saturday

Published

3 days ago

May 3, 2024

Shanieka

Dana Malcolm

Staff Writer

After resounding success in the Bahamas, hit play ‘March On, The Story of Us’ has been inundated with requests to take their show on the road, and the first location they’ll be hitting is Providenciales Turks and Caicos with tickets on sale this weekend from May 3 to 5.

Magnetic Media spoke to Gea Pierre, playwright, who told us the TCI was a natural first choice for the cast and crew.

“We started ‘March On’ in November 2023 and it was really an opportunity for us to tell a story, the story of the Bahamas and to encompass the nations that we have an amazing relationship with like the Turks and Caicos,” she continued “We really got a lot of people calling [for the play] from [the TCI], so much so we really had to pay attention.”

The response to ‘March On’ at home and abroad was overwhelming.

“To say it went well is an understatement, even before we opened we got calls from Canada, from all over the US with people wanting us to come and perform.”

And take the show on the road they did! Gea and her team have launched “March On: The Tour” and will be in Providenciales to perform on May 10th and 11th. It’s the first of a number of stops which include Nassau and several US locations.

A ticket booth will be set up from today, Friday May 3 in the foyer of IGA grocery store beginning at 1 p.m. Friday and then again all day on Saturday, allowing residents to purchase with cash.

Online tickets are available for purchase with credit cards. Then the full team returns on Friday, May 11 for the actual showing at 8 pm and their two showings on Saturday at 4pm and 8 pm. The venue is Brayton Hall, Providenciales under the patronage of Washington Misick, TCI Premier and First Lady Delthia Misick.

Describing the close familial relationships between the TCI and the Bahamas, for many on the crew it will be like coming home Gea told us, for others it will be a treat to visit for the first time, the places that their grandparents described.

Tickets are only $60 for general seating and $75 for VIP seating.

Gea maintained that the team wanted to keep the show as accessible to residents as possible.

As for why you should come out and see the play, other than the great price point:

“The way that people have responded to it is non stoplaughter, people have been moved to tears because there’s some emotion. It does not only lend to Bahamians. It’s a family drama, and anyone who’s ever been a part of a family is going to get something out of it, and something moving.”