Financial Crime World

Title: Bermuda’s Fight Against Financial Crimes: Key Legislation and Regulatory Bodies

Bermuda, a membership of the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force (CFATF) and a follower of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) global standards, is committed to preventing money laundering and terrorist financing in compliance with the FATF’s 40 recommendations against money laundering and nine against terrorism financing.

Key Legislation in Bermuda’s Fight Against Financial Crimes

Two primary regulations have been crucial in Bermuda’s anti-financial crimes efforts:

  1. The Proceeds of Crime Act 1997 (POCA Act): Effective since January 19, 1998, this legislation expanded provisions on criminalizing proceeds of crime laundering and enabled the confiscation of criminal activity benefits.
  2. The Anti-Terrorism (Financial and Other Measures) Act 2004: This Act further strengthened Bermuda’s stance against financial crimes.

These Acts introduced Bermuda’s Suspicious Activity Reporting (SAR) regime, which is discussed below.

The Reporting Regime and its Implications

The reporting requirement, part of both Acts, obligates individuals to report any knowledge or suspicion of money laundering or terrorist financing to the Financial Intelligence Agency (FIA). Failure to report such activities results in an offense, but individuals are protected from civil liability if they make disclosures.

The reporting requirement applies to all persons. To provide advice on local money laundering detection and prevention, and international efforts to combat money laundering, the National Anti-Money Laundering Committee (NAMLC) was established in 1997.

The Role of NAMLC

NAMLC’s members include the:

  1. Chairman
  2. Solicitor General
  3. Director of the FIA
  4. Financial Secretary
  5. Director of Public Prosecutions
  6. Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Justice
  7. Commissioner of Police
  8. CEO of the Bermuda Monetary Authority (BMA)
  9. Collector of Customs
  10. Appointments made by the Minister of Justice

The Minister, in consultation with NAMLC, has the power to create regulations to detect and prevent money laundering and terrorism financing, under the Proceeds of Crime Act. In 2008, these regulations were updated with The Proceeds of Crime (Anti-Money Laundering and Anti-Terrorist Financing) Regulations 2008.

The Bermuda Monetary Authority (BMA) and its Role

The BMA acts as the financial regulatory body, overseeing the financial services industry, licensed entities, prudential supervision, and inspections to ensure compliance with Bermuda’s anti-money laundering and anti-terrorist financing systems and controls. The Proceeds of Crime (Anti-Money Laundering and Anti-Terrorist Financing Supervision and Enforcement) Act 2008 governs the BMA’s role. The BMA’s strict licensing regime deters potential illicit activities.

  • Understood the key legislation in Bermuda’s fight against financial crimes
  • Gained knowledge on Bermuda’s Suspicious Activity Reporting regime
  • Learned about The National Anti-Money Laundering Committee (NAMLC)
  • Identified the Bermuda Monetary Authority’s role

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