The 15-member Caribbean Community (Caricom ) grouping yesterday said it is “deeply concerned” by the resurgence of the designation of “tax havens” being attached to the financial services centres in the region.
Caricom said that the designation has re-surfaced following the publication of the so called “Panama Papers” alleging that a number of world leaders and other prominent people used a law firm in Panama to develop off-shore companies to evade taxes.
“The loose attribution of this label ignores the reality that the regulation of this sector in Caricom is fully compliant with international standards,” Caricom said in a statement.
“Indeed, all Caricom member states and associate members are committed to, and are in compliance with, the international certification process of the IMF/World Bank Financial Sector Assessment Programme (FSAP), the Global Forum of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the Financial Action Task Force and the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force (CFATF). Bilateral commitments have also been made under the United States implementation regime for the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA).”
Caricom said that as more disclosures unfold with respect to the leak of these financial records, it is urging “caution by those making the leap towards moral indignation and the unjust labelling of the financial services centres in the Community, which have taken all necessary steps to ensure compliance with international regulations and standards”.
Earlier this week, Bahamas Financial Services Minister, Hope Strachan, said the leak of the documents from the Panamanian law firm “is disconcerting” and in Jamaica, the corruption watchdog National Integrity Action (NIA) in a statement called on the Major Organised Crime and Anti-Corruption Agency to collaborate with international law enforcement partners and commence a probe to determine whether any Jamaicans are involved.
In the Cayman Islands, the Chief Executive Officer of Cayman Finance, Judd Scott, said the British Overseas Territory is not a secrecy jurisdiction.
He said the Cayman Islands financial services industry continues to play a leadership role on international regulatory issues and for setting global standards to fight financial crime. He also argued that it has a robust regime for regulation and cross border cooperation in place surpassing many of the world’s top international financial centres.
The first casualty of the leak documents is Iceland’s embattled prime minister, Sigmundur Davíð Gunnlaugsson, who tendered his resignation in the wake of a mounting political crisis over his family’s offshore investments. (CMC)