Graham Thompson Engaged to Revise Bahamas Investment Fund Legislation
July 12, 2016
The Bahamas Ministry of Financial Services and The Securities Commission of The Bahamas, hosted attorneys from Graham Thompson on July 8th, 2016, to discuss the overhaul of legislation governing the Investment Funds Act. The goal of the exercise is to strengthen regulation of the sector and improve long-term growth and competition for this investment product. Graham Thompson has been engaged as the technical consultant to the Securities Commission, and will be responsible for benchmarking the proposed legislation in comparison to our international competitors, ahead of the European Union passporting process.
According to the Nassau Guardian, “The commission has assembled a project team for the overhaul consisting of a small group of leading industry professionals. The project team, along with a legislative drafter assigned by the Attorney General, will review and give input to the proposed legislation during the drafting process.”
The investment funds industry has been an area of growth for the Bahamas, with the number of funds increasing by 11% from 2013 to 2015. “This growth signals that the Bahamas may have an opportunity to gain ground and expand the investment funds industry, which is good news in a sector plagued by contractions in private wealth management,” according the the Security Commission’s Executive Director, Christina Rolle.
Graham Thompson was represented by Partner Aliya Allen and Associate Sarah Packington, at the meetings hosted by Hope Strachan, Minister of Financial Services and other executives from the Securities Commission of The Bahamas.