In a statement released at the weekend, chairman of the Bahamas Financial Services Board, Michael L. Paton predicted a busy year ahead for the jurisdiction’s financial services centre.
Welcoming the fact that the Bahamas is not on any of the international ‘blacklists’ which have posed such a threat in recent years, Mr Paton nevertheless observed that: ‘There are several storms on the horizon, however, which will have to be closely tracked, including the proposed FTAA agreement and its impact on financial services.’
The BFSB chief went on to add that: ‘2003 should be a very active year for the Bahamas financial services industry. The short-term legislative agenda contemplates, inter alia, new investment funds legislation, foundation legislation, protected cell legislation and netting and set off legislation.’
‘ The purpose of the proposed new legislation is to demonstrate that the Bahamas is an attractive jurisdiction for the domiciliation of investment structures and that Bahamian law provides certainty and clarity with regard to these structures.’
Mr Paton also revealed that the Bahamian wealth management sector is currently undergoing a major shift.
‘Within private banking the emphasis is now shifting to investment management, which generates significant fees for private banks. The new model of private banking includes a variety of structured banking products, which facilitates access to investment products hitherto unavailable to the majority of private banking clients,’ he explained.
By Carla Johnson, Investors Offshore.com
