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CCA: WE SHOULD TAKE ADVANTAGE OF BAHAMAS – Contractor reached out for help to son of top govt advisor

Baha Mar's main contractor asked the son of Perry Christie's top policy adviser to intervene when his father proposed changing The Pointe's Heads of Agreement over how many Bahamian construction workers would be employed.

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800 job applications for new mobile player

Cable Bahamas had received around 800 applications for jobs with the nation's second mobile provider by end-last week, it was revealed yesterday, and is confident the new operator can beat its financial targets.

Buyers 'pull back' on Moody's threat

International buyers are "pulling back" due to uncertainties caused by Moody's threatened downgrading of the Bahamas to 'junk' status, realtors have warned.

Mortgage finance 'biggest hurdle' to housing recovery

Mortgage financing access remains "the biggest hurdle" to reviving the domestic real estate market, causing up to three deals for the same property to fall through.

De-risk 'client migration' to benefit larger banks

Correspondent bank 'de-risking' could drive another wave of Bahamian financial services consolidation by sparking "client migration" to larger institutions, a former finance minister has warned.

Gov't urged: 'Change air cargo fines today'

The Government has been urged to "amend right away this Monday" the new and increased Customs sanctions on air cargo operators, a Bahamian courier company branding them "ridiculous".

Govt sought BPL fix in 12-months

The Government wanted Bahamas Power & Light's (BPL) manager to guarantee its facilities would match the operational standards of comparable energy utilities within a year of taking over, Tribune Business can reveal.

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Bran: 'Very dodgy' to interfere with business pricing

The Government will be "in very dodgy territory" should it seek to interfere with how Bahamian businesses price their goods and services, the DNA leader has warned.

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Gov't pushes deficit elimination forecast back three years

The Government has pushed back its original projections for eliminating the fiscal deficit by three full years, and is now pinning its hopes on a $449 million, four-year 'swing' into surplus.

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$600m Sarkis claims branded 'hogwash'

An ex-Baha Mar director has slammed as "hogwash" claims that Sarkis Izmirlian lacked the $600 million financing needed to complete the project, accusing the Government of "playing the blame game".

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Bahamasair's $120m finance for new fleet

Two major global financial institutions have been hired to raise $120 million for Bahamasair before year-end, Tribune Business can reveal.

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'Madness': 90% of loan requests are consumer

The Bahamas' consumer loan "madness" is making sustainable economic development impossible, as more than nine out of every 10 credit applications fall into this category.

China provides 'no Baha Mar comfort'

Baha Mar's Bahamian creditors and former employees "can't take much comfort" from the project's financier breaking its silence, the FNM's deputy leader arguing that it merely confirmed "no deal is in hand".

Bahamian insurers eye TCI CLICO deal

Two Bahamian insurance companies are in negotiations to acquire CLICO’s Turks & Caicos business, Tribune Business can reveal, with the deadline for the cancellation of the insolvent insurer’s local medical policies just two weeks away.

MSC cruise port: No lease agreement yet

No agreement has yet been reached to transfer the lease of Ocean Cay to Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) for its private cruise port, with the current holder saying of the project: "It won't be done overnight."

Freeport losing investment since climate 'up in the air'

Freeport's largest investor has confirmed that nine-figure investments have been delayed because the Government has left the city's expiring tax incentives "up in the air".

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Superwash chief: VAT bites 12-14% off key products

A leading businessman says the Bahamian economy is stuck "in a funk" as Value-Added Tax's (VAT) full impact starts to bite, with sales in two of his key product categories down 12-14 per cent. Dionisio D'Aguilar, Superwash's president, told Tribune Business that the Bahamas desperately needed to change its attitude towards "rebooting the economy" and making it easier to conduct business.

Gov't warned: 'We can't take another shock' with NHI

The Government was yesterday warned that National Health Insurance (NHI) would not succeed without private sector buy-in, one executive warning: "The economy cannot take another shock." Edison Sumner, the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employers Confederation's (BCCEC) chief executive, told Tribune Business that an unsustainable NHI programme could have "catastrophic effects for a fragile economy" that was still bedding down Value-Added Tax (VAT).

Broker blames SEC battle on regulator’s ‘inaction’

A Bahamian broker/dealer has blamed the Securities Commission’s “inaction” for creating its dispute with US regulators over their document production demands.

Broker ‘in peril’ if it meets US demands

A Bahamian broker/dealer will “act at its peril” should it comply with US federal regulators’ demands to produce thousands of documents relevant to their ongoing New York legal battle.