The Bahamas is looking to increase the competiveness of its financial services offering with the launch of new products, according to the domicile’s financial services minister.
Contributing to the debate on the 2012/2013 mid-year budget in the Bahamas House of Assembly, Ryan Pinder, minister of financial services, said that work is underway to rebrand the Bahamas as a full and competitive business service centre.
To achieve this, his department has identified key sectors for growth, including the fund business given the domicile’s recent achievement of International Organization of Securities Commissions ‘A’ status.
It is also preparing to launch a new strategy for captive and international insurance. The Bahamas was home to 11 captives at the end of 2011, according to the domicile's Captive Insurance Companies Association listing.
Speaking ahead of the Business & Finance Summit that took place in February, Nicholas Leighton of Atlas Insurance Management said that despite positive moves and the versatility of the captive product, the Bahamas is lagging behind other captive domiciles.
“Captives have been used for over 40 years, assisting companies in their risk management and strategic planning. From the entrepreneur to the multinational corporation, captives have a place within any organisational structure and can provide multiple benefits."
"The Bahamas has updated its External Insurance Act, reinforcing the commitment to the captive insurance industry and promoting The Bahamas as a domicile of choice; yet, the growth in the industry has been relatively slow compared to other domiciles."
The financial services minister went on to say that the Bahamas will target new markets, including North and Latin America, and it will launch a Value Added Trade Strategy, with a focus on actively utilising existing and prospective trade agreements to foster regional integration, develop business networks and enhance this domicile’s trade infrastructure.
Pinder said: “Each component is an important element of our economic development, one building on the other. A robust industrial sector supports a trade agenda. A dynamic trade industry provides the foundation for the expansion and further development of the financial services industry.”
