Bahamas Takes Bold Step Against Financial Crime, Achieves Top Ratings
In a major milestone for financial integrity, The Bahamas has achieved top ratings in its efforts to combat money laundering, terrorist financing, and proliferation financing.
Effective Regulation is Key
The Central Bank of The Bahamas plays a crucial role in preventing and detecting these types of financial crimes by ensuring that supervised financial institutions have effective systems and controls in place. As the regulator for Banks & Trust Companies, Payment Service Providers, Co-Operative Credit Unions, and Registered Representatives, the Central Bank:
- Develops and enforces laws and regulations to prevent and detect money laundering, terrorist financing, and proliferation financing
- Assesses risks at both a national and individual institution level
- Conducts off-site surveillance and on-site examinations of supervised financial institutions
- Provides guidance and training to ensure compliance
Significant Milestone Achieved
In December 2022, The Bahamas attained technical compliance ratings of “Compliant and Largely Compliant” in all 40 of the Financial Action Task Force’s (FATF) Recommendations. This marks a significant milestone for The Bahamas, making it only the second jurisdiction in the Caribbean, South, and North American regions to achieve such standings.
Risk-Based Supervision
The Central Bank’s risk-based supervisory regime is designed to identify potential vulnerabilities and ensure that supervised financial institutions have effective anti-money laundering, countering the financing of terrorism, and proliferation financing measures in place. Through its efforts, the Central Bank plays a critical role in:
- Protecting the integrity of the financial system
- Preventing financial crimes such as money laundering, terrorist financing, and proliferation financing
Commitment to International Standards
The Bahamas’ achievement is a significant step forward in its fight against financial crime, demonstrating its commitment to international standards and best practices in anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism. This milestone underscores The Bahamas’ dedication to maintaining a robust financial system that safeguards the interests of both domestic and international stakeholders.