The Tribune

By NATARIO McKENZIE

Tribune Business

Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

Revelations that 55 Bahamian passport holders hold accounts at HSBC Switzerland appear to be “overblown”, the Minister of Financial Services

yesterday saying that without more details there was nothing to be concerned about.

    In an interview with Tribune Business, Hope Strachan said the information did not suggest any wrongdoing on the part of account holders in this jurisdiction.

“The information didn’t suggest on the face of it any wrongdoing on the part of any of the account holders,” said Mrs Strachan.

“We would have to see how the story unfolds, but just on a sort of prime facie basis, I would say that if there are Bahamian account holders, the HSBC action really  involved a Swiss bank, the European Union and their tax laws,  which they feel would have been violated.

“If one is saying that these are Bahamian account holders, on the face of it they would not be subject to the taxes of the European Union unless they have some sort of dual citizenship.”

Mrs Strachan added: “We have to see how that unfolds and if, in fact, any of those persons would have had dual citizenship.

“We are a financial services jurisdiction and so we would have any number of persons who would obviously have accounts all around the world, including Switzerland, with significant sums of money in them. 

“Without even thinking of casting aspersions on anyone without further information, I would have to err on the side of caution and say that those persons who would have done business from our jurisdiction, given the type of regulatory regime that we have concerning Central Bank controls and our Know Your Client (KYC) base, which is the undergirding principle for most of the financial institutions of The Bahamas, I would have to err on the side of caution and say without more there is nothing to be concerned about.

“As the investigation moves forward we certainly have to watch it closely to see if it does affect many of the banks and trust companies, and those financial services providers here in the Bahamas.”

Although the data obtained by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists said the 55 Bahamian passport holders accounted for 27 per cent of the 202 HSBC clients linked to this nation, it is possible these persons are financial services professionals - lawyers, accountants and bankers - acting as nominees for their clients.

Very few of the Bahamas-linked accounts were numbered, being split almost 50/50 between individuals and corporate entities being named as the signatories.

Some 418 Bahamas-linked client accounts were opened at HSBC’s Swiss private bank between 1988 and 2006.

The Bahamas was also ranked eighth in the world when it came to the total sum on deposit at HSBC, a figure that totalled around $7 billion.

The largest account was said to be worth $1.6 billion, but over 100 clients - more than 50 per cent - had balances ranging between $0-$60 million.