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Bahamas News

Former FTX CEO $39 Million dollar home for sale, 40 Bahamians out of a job & many more out of hundreds of millions

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By Dana Malcolm

Staff Writer

 

#TheBahamas, November 16, 2022 – Earlier this year The Bahamas was flooded with celebrities all heading to Crypto Bahamas, a crypto currency conference designed to help the country on its journey to become the leading digital asset hub in the Caribbean.  Sponsored by then-billionaire Sam Bankman-Fried, his crypto company FTX, which is based in Nassau, drew the likes of Katy Perry, Gisele Bundchen, former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair and former United States President Bill Clinton among others.

Forbes magazine had called it ‘Crypto’s Most Exclusive Gathering’.   Now less than eight months later, FTX has filed for bankruptcy, Bahamian regulators have frozen its assets.   Bankman-Fried has stepped down as CEO and his $39 million dollar Nassau home is on the market.

The Bahamian authorities are trying to figure out what exactly went wrong.  They along with the US Justice Department are investigating if Bankman-Fried used customer funds from FTX to trade in another fund of his.   He has already admitted on twitter that he grossly miscalculated the amount of cash the company had to cover daily withdrawals from the site.

But who will pay the price for the miscalculation?  Some of the ‘most sophisticated investors in the world’ as they are described by the Institutional Investor lost hundreds of millions at FTXs sudden collapse.  Forbes lists some of the biggest losers as Venture capital companies Sequoia Capital, SoftBank, and Tiger Global who saw more than 300 million dollars combined go up in smoke.

In a move similar to what many governments do and what the Turks and Caicos Islands government has indicated it is planning to do with its new pension plan, the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan said it invested up to $95 million. Tom Brady and Gisele Bundchen may also take millions in losses.

And the workers, forty of whom are Bahamian who are now out of a job and lost their investments as well, are estimated to have lost up to $950 million dollars based on when the company’s shares were at its highest.

In a 13 tweet thread that said mostly nothing, Bankman-Fried promised this, “My goal—my one goal—is to do right by customers.  I’m contributing what I can to doing so.  I’m meeting in-person with regulators and working with the teams to do what we can for customers.

And after that, investors.  But first, customers.”

Bahamas News

Bahamas economic growth

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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.

 

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Bahamas News

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

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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.

 

 

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Bahamas News

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

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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.”

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