By Gerrino J. Saunders
Journal Staff Writer

Despite what may seem like unfair policies and attacks, The Bahamas
continues to stand among the top financial services jurisdictions in the
world according to Prime Minister Philip Davis.
His comments came as he moved for the second reading and passing of the
Automatic Exchange of Financial Accounting Information Bill 2025.
He said the Bill further strengthens The Bahamas’ legislative framework in
keeping with the organization for Economic Cooperation and Development
(OECD) common reporting standards.
He said, “we continue to adhere to the highest standards as we coordinate
with nations across the world to combat tax evasion and increase
transparency in the financial services sector. 
“The principal act, the Automatic Exchange of Financial Account
Information Act, was enacted in 2016 to ensure that The Bahamas was
compliant with the OECD’s Automatic Exchange standards.”
Opposition leader Michael Pintard announced their support for the
amendments. He said, “this amendment we agree is a critical piece of
legislation that reaffirms The Bahamas commitment to transparency,
economic integrity and international cooperation.
“Yet in an increasingly interconnected world financial security and
economic growth are dependent on our ability to engage with global
standards while protecting our national interests.
‘The amendments to this Bill represent a necessary step in ensuring that
The Bahamas remains a responsible financial jurisdiction while safe
guarding our economy from external economic threats,” said Mr. Pintard.

According to the Prime Minister over 100 jurisdictions are committed to
upholding the very same standards to ensure that local financial
institutions are identifying non-resident account holders, reporting on
pertinent financial information, such as their account balances, interest,
and dividends, and automatically exchanging this information with other
jurisdictions. 
He acknowledged that in its 2018 Peer Review Report for The Bahamas, the
OECD’s Global Forum Secretariat made a number of recommendations for
the improvement of our legislative framework.
He said, “the report recognised our efforts but also pointed to several areas
of needed improvement. Since then, we have amended the act as necessary
to ensure full compliance with the Common Reporting Standards – or CRS
as they are commonly called. ‘Fortunately, we were well-positioned to make
the necessary changes to strengthen our legislative framework.
“I don’t think any country has a higher rate of per capita financial services
talent than The Bahamas. The local financial services industry is a showcase
of Bahamian excellence, so it should surprise no one that we continue to
lead the way, regionally and globally,” said Davis.
He said since taking office, his administration has relied on “stellar” local
expertise to navigate the changing regulatory landscape and have worked
hard to promote The Bahamas as a safe harbour for investments, as well as
wealth management.
He said, “it is well known that we are among the best jurisdictions to grow
and manage wealth.  Investors recognise this fact. That’s why we’ve brought
in over $10 billion and counting in the past three years. It’s why our
financial services sector continues to stand strong despite the many
changes in the global regulatory landscape.
“Our responsiveness and ability to adapt to regulatory and market changes
have kept us punching above our weight as a regional giant in financial
services. In the past year alone, we’ve made a number of changes to retain
our competitiveness.
“We have rolled out key amendments to maintain our competitive edge in
the Brazilian market, especially now that the once-innovative ICONs have

become obsolete. The DARE Act has undergone multiple revisions, with
more to come as the industry continues to grow and change.
“Our approach to business licences for IBCs has been overhauled, and the
regulatory framework for the Securities Commission has been
modernized,” Mr. Davis explained.
He noted that previous missteps by our predecessors in the implementation
of economic substance reporting – an issue that led to the EU blacklisting –
have been corrected.
“Thanks to the swift intervention of our compliance and financial services
experts, we’re now officially off the EU’s blacklist,” said the Prime Minister
who also referenced the government’s “smooth” rollout of the Domestic
Minimum Top-Up Tax which has also created a valuable new revenue
stream for the government.
“To sum it all up,” he said, “we are in a season of innovation and growth for
the financial services sector. As a nation, we’ve been able to implement
changes that industry observers predicted would destroy our sector –
instead, we’ve turned those changes into strengths.”
Continuing he wanted to be clear that his administration’s compliance with
regulatory demands has been accompanied by robust advocacy for our
country.
He said, “it is well known that global standards for financial transparency
have not always been administered fairly. Not all countries play by the same
rules. Some countries end up on blacklists and gray lists while others seem
to escape that fate, despite the same or inferior compliance records.
“Under this administration, for the first time ever, we have a strong voice
on the international stage pushing for change to the status quo. We were
early champions of a United Nations Convention on International Tax
Cooperation, voicing strong opposition to the OECD’s approach toward
small financial services centres like ours.
“So, today, as we debate a Bill to meet the OECD’s Common Reporting
Standards, we are demonstrating that we can comply – and will comply –
but compliance is not the same thing as accepting business as usual,” said
Davis.

The Prime Minister thanked the teams at the Ministry of Finance, the
Ministry of Economic Affairs, Office of the Attorney General and other
agencies that contributed to the development of the financial sector and
who were instrumental in developing the amendments.