04262018 business

business@tribunemedia.net

THURSDAY, APRIL 26, 2018

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‘Not a single bribe demand is probed’

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

C

orruption is “rooted in the fabric of Bahamian society”, a survey unveiled yesterday revealing that zero action was taken over the 6 per cent of bribery demands reported to authorities.

* And just 6% of such corruption reported * Survey: 10% of Bahamians ‘paid’ for public services * Findings show ‘corruption rooted in society’s fabric’ Transparency International’s Global Corruption Barometer survey found that despite “one in 10 Bahamians” disclosing they

had paid a bribe within the past year to obtain public services, few reported this corruption to law enforcement.

The findings, based on a survey of 1,000 Bahamians conducted in October 2017

SEE PAGE 4

Corporate tax removal paves way for 10-year financial sector ‘molding’

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net THE Bahamas can “mould the financial services industry it wants for the next 10 years” after dumping corporate taxation from a key Bill, a former Cabinet Minister said yesterday.

Ryan Pinder, ex-minister of financial services, told Tribune Business that stripping efforts to comply with the European Union’s (EU) ‘ring fencing’ demands from

* Ex-minister: Changes were ‘make or break’ * Bahamas can focus on ‘business we want’ * Gov’t acts on sector’s ‘unanimous’ advice the Multinational Entities Financial Reporting Bill will enable the Bahamas to “attract the type of business we want to attract”.

Describing the changes to the Bill, which was tabled in the House of Assembly yesterday, as “make or break” for the financial services industry, Mr

‘RIDDLED WITH DANGER: HOW INSURANCE VAT HITS STORM VICTIMS

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net THE continued imposition of VAT on general insurance premiums is “riddled with danger” for that industry, the Government and wider private sector, a respected accountant warned yesterday.

Kevin Seymour, also a former Grand Bahama Chamber of Commerce president, told Tribune Business that the 7.5 per cent levy’s “unintended consequences” appeared to

* EX-CHAMBER CHIEF DETAILS ‘UNINTENDED EFFECTS’ * TAX BEING SOUGHT FROM CLAIMS PROCEEDS * CONTRARY TO LAW’S INTENT; FUNDS FLOWING OUT SEE PAGE 10

FRAUD, EVASION FEARS BLOCK TAX BREAKS ON OVER-THE-HILL GOODS

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net FEARS of “duty arbitrage” and tax evasion mean that businesses in the proposed Over-the-Hill ‘tax free zones’ will not receive breaks on the goods they sell, the Government revealed yesterday.

The Minnis administration, unveiling its long-awaited proposals for the Economic Empowerment Zone including Bain Town, Grant’s Town and parts of Centreville, said

providing Customs duty exemptions on all goods purchased by businesses in those areas raised several concerns.

Apart from the possibility that merchants would be stuck with inventory upon which they had already paid taxes, and were unable to move, the Government said such tax breaks would be extremely difficult to police and prevent abuse.

“It has been historically difficult to devise a mechanism for merchants to

SEE PAGE 7

Pinder praised the Minnis administration for taking the sector’s “unanimous” advice to deal with the EU and Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development’s (OECD) demands in separate legislation. Mr Pinder, who co-led the industry ‘working group’ on the Bill, said:

“I’ll tell you the feedback we received from industry was a unanimous recommendation that these items [EU and OECD] be dealt with separately, and not entwined, in this legislation.

“It’s now an opportunity for us to focus on what our

SEE PAGE 11

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DPM pledges ‘most stringent controls’ on ownership registry

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

* MOVES TO EASE DATA PROTECTION FEARS * NO ACCESS BY ORDINARY PUBLIC MEMBERS * INDUSTRY: NO CONSULTATION MEANS CAN’T CALM CLIENTS

THE Deputy Prime Minister yesterday promised that the proposed Beneficial Ownership registry will have “the most stringent controls”, amid industry concerns over the lack of prior consultation.

K P Turnquest told Tribune Business that it was “not an unreasonable guess” to suggest sensitive finanthat the Bahamas cial information would follow the related to hunCayman Islands’ dreds of thousands lead by establishof companies, ing a registry that both domestic and is neither ‘in the non-resident, Mr cloud’ or linked to Turnquest replied: the Internet.

“I don’t want to He spoke to this really talk about newspaper after that at this point, the proposed regbut suffice it to say istry, which will contain beneficial TURNQUEST it will be protected with the most ownership information on “all corporate stringent controls.”

The bid to create the and legal entities” incorporated in the Bahamas, registry, via the Register of raised immediate data pro- Beneficial Ownership Bill tection concerns among the 2018 that was tabled in the financial services industry’s House of Assembly yesterday, is designed to bring the high net worth clients.

Asked how the Government planned to safeguard SEE PAGE 6

PAGE 2, Thursday, April 26, 2018

THE TRIBUNE

SHOWING YOUR BEST FACE VIA THE INTERNET IS there any real value to owning a business website?

It is sometimes perceived that small businesses will not benefit because of their size, and inability to produce a well thought-out site. This thought might just be a misconception and, since we all have our own reality, potential customers might likewise assume that a business without an Internet presence ‘does not’ exist.

I stand by the assertion that having a website is critical for any serious-minded

business, whether it is a one-man show or a 10,000-employee corporate giant. If you do not have a website your company could be losing business to rivals that do. By virtue of this observation, can we agree that a presence on the Internet enables customers, potential employees or even investors to haven easier access to your business?

Based on that very same principle, a website has the tendency to ‘level the playing field’. Having a well-designed site can also

project an image and professionalism associated with a much larger company if set up properly. It is not always the size of the tiger, but the size of its roar. I have seen websites for large companies that were so badly designed, they automatically lost credibility from persons just browsing. Be careful of websites featuring numerous whistles and bells, but which do not advance your business.

Even if your business is in its start-up stage, do not

be so quick to dismiss your product or service as one that cannot be sold online, as nowadays there is very little that cannot be sold over the Internet. More than 20 million shoppers are now online, purchasing everything from books to computers, and cars to real estate. There are numerous benefits to having a website, so let us look at a few: ALWAYS OPEN: A website communicates with prospects and customers 24 hours per day, 7 days a week, and 365 days

a year…while you sleep.

Remarkably, even when you are not at work your website is. Customers can learn about your products through the website at their convenience, which is more convenient than passing out business cards to thousands of people everywhere.

EXPANDABLE: The Internet (and your website) has no borders, as Koreans can access the same information as your neighbours across the street ,and it will not cost you or them one extra penny.

SELLS DIRECTLY: E– commerce can dramatically reduce expensive overheads while delivering a 24/7 ‘sales force’. I am not advocating that all efforts should be placed into selling ‘all wares’ via the Internet, but if your product/service lends itself to easy online sales, why not?

SAVES TIME: Providing information to customers can sometimes be consuming, but no doubt it is much easier and quicker to update information about new products, special promotions or any new services regarding your company in a short time via a website.

Consistency is key.

FEEDBACK: Forms and e-mail allows clients to communicate feedback.

IMPROVES CUSTOMER SERVICE: Including an FAQ page, articles or newsletters to answer questions is a valueadded service to keep customers updated and connected.

COMPETITION: The sooner you gain a presence on the Internet the better. Ask your competitors; they would agree.

Let us ponder on this: Sooner or later, someone may type your product/service into a search engine and guess whose address would not pop up? You guessed right…. your business.

If you are in direct competition with another business that has a website, but you do not, their advantage is greater as you are certainly not open for business. Let us be blunt: How can you compete if you have not thrown your website into the ring?

AFFORDABLE: When you compare the fee of a website to the expense of creating and distributing other traditional forms of marketing materials, there is no advertising medium that comes close to the effectiveness of a website.

The Art of Graphix

BY DEIDRE M BASTIAN

CURRENT: One of the most attractive features offered by a website is the ability to update quickly and stay current, unlike printed materials that require revision and reprinting costs.

A website is the face of any business, and speaks volumes. It either says: “Hey, look, we take our business so seriously that we have created this delightful site for our customers”, or screams: “Look, I have allowed my 10 year-old nephew to design my site, so pray our strength and good luck finding anything of any worth”.

Ensure that you receive value for money when investing in a website.

Agreed, a website is no doubt a profitable investment, so it is actually cleverer to not have one if it makes your business appear unprofessional or part of a Mickey Mouse parade.

So, an entrepreneur has to decide whether or not he/she is serious about doing business, or merely just ‘going along’ for the ride. The jury is in, and my assessment remains: “A business without a website is not only the best ‘well kept’ secret, but surely a business without any real assignment”.

Until we meet again, fill your life with memories rather than regrets. Enjoy life and stay on top of your game!

NB: Columnist welcomes feedback at deedee21bastian@gmail.com ABOUT COLUMNIST: Deidre Bastian is a professionally-trained graphic designer/ marketing co-ordinator with qualifications of M.Sc., B.Sc., A.Sc. She has trained at institutions such as: Miami Lakes Technical Centre, Success Training College, College of the Bahamas, Nova Southeastern University, Learning Tree International, Langevine International and Synergy Bahamas.

© 2016 ConAgra Foods Inc. All rights reserved.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, April 26, 2018, PAGE 3

New water plant in 300% quality rise A WATER plant that will supply western New Providence communities has seen a 300 per cent quality improvement since it began service in 2017.

New Providence Water Development Company’s (NPWDCo) new reverse osmosis plant, now-completed following a two-year construction process, represents a multimillion dollar investment designed to improve supply reliability and water quality for an expanded service area.

It will serve communities including Lyford Cay, Old Fort Bay, Mount Pleasant, Serenity and South Ocean, replacing the existing pump house. Coupled with new pipework, it has allowed NPWDCo to produce water quality that rates significantly higher than recommended world standards..

“This plant has been designed and built to last,” explained New Providence Water Development Company’s president, Andrew Symonette.

“We invested a significant amount of our resources in acquiring the highest standard of stainless steel and other materials, which means that over time we’ll spend less time and money on maintenance and more on improving the quality of the product we provide our customers.”

While set to be officially opened in the coming months, the plant has been producing water since late 2017.

Its completion is the culmination of a series of improvements undertaken

by NPWDCo over the past year to improve the customer experience and overall quality of service.

“The feedback has been great,” Mr Symonette said.

“Residents have called us to tell us they’ve noticed the difference in water hardness, and even the clarity of the water coming

MEMBERS of New Providence Water Development Company’s (NPWDCo) reverse osmosis team take readings to maintain water quality at the newly-completed plant that is set to be formally opened in the coming months.

ANDREW SYMONETTE, president of the New Providence Water Development Company (NPWDCo), poses with the members of its reverse osmosis team at the recently-completed water plant that currently produces up to 1.3 million gallons of water per day for customers.

Photos courtesy of Mark DaCunha for Barefoot Marketing

ATTENTION ALL MEMBERS OF Bahamasair Employees Provident Fund Our

ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING will be held on Wednesday, May 16th, 2018 NPWDCO’s reverse osmosis facility in Western New Providence has been more than two years in the making. from their faucet, and we’re happy that our efforts are being recognised”.

Besides the plant’s construction, NPWDCo has replaced of miles of pipeline to service its 1500 customers. It has added a new web portal and social media spaces, which have

given customers a platform to receive real-time assistance and access to important information.

With these upgrades completed, the company has set its sights on expansion. A new reverse osmosis train will soon be installed at the plant to increase its

purification capacity from the current 1.3 million gallons per day to two million gallons per day.

“We’re very proud of this facility and would also like to construct other plants, expanding into other areas in the future,” Mr Symonette said.

at

The New Providence Community Centre Blake Road at 5:00pm All members are urged to attend as important matters will be discussed.

MAP DIRECTIONS

BAHAMAS FINANCIAL CENTRE EXECUTIVE OFFICE BUILDING

Eastern Road Entrance House on the corner orange and white

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PUBLIC AUCTION LOT 22 BLACKBEARD’S TERRACE SUBDIVISION.

EASTERN ROAD

NOTICE

ANY PRICE OR ANY OFFER WILL BE CONSIDERED To be sold by Public Auction pursuant to the Writ of Execution of the Honourable Madam Registrar of the Supreme Court of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, dated the 22 November 2017 in Supreme Court Action number CLE/gen/00041 of 2017.

Description: 3-4 Bedrooms 3 Bathroom, Just off Eastern Road, Recently Built Home. (Details without guarantee) The above particulars and any further particulars that may be given with regard to the Property and Home at Lot 22 Blackbeard’s Terrace Subdivision are and will be given in good faith, but no responsibility and/or liability will be accepted for their accuracy. Purchasers must make their own independent enquires.

All Bids may be submitted in a Sealed Envelope by Monday 30 April 2018: To Rolle & Rolle, No 13, Seventh Terrace West, Centreville, Nassau, Bahamas, by hand delivery. (Same Street as Xerox) The winning bidder must present Twenty-five (25%) of the purchase price/deposit at the time of the winning auction. The balance is to be paid within Twenty-one (21) days thereafter. All deposits are non- refundable. Price analysis for homes in Blackbeard’s Terrace Subdivision can be obtained from reputable Real Estate Agents. The Provost Marshall reserves the right to reject any and all bids.

PAGE 4, Thursday, April 26, 2018

BRIBE

FROM PAGE 1 by the Public Domain research firm, found that almost half were too scared of the consequences - such as potential retaliation and victimisation - to report allegations of ‘rent seeking’ by public officials.

This was despite 52 per cent of respondents deeming it “socially acceptable” to report corruption to the authorities, with the findings suggesting ‘fear’ is a major obstacle to stamping out a problem that the Prime Minister recently estimated costs the Bahamian economy some $200 million per year.

“While reporting corruption was in theory seen as socially acceptable in the Bahamas, in practice few people actually reported corruption when they experienced it,” Transparency International said of its ‘corruption perceptions’ finding. “Of the bribe payers in our survey, fewer than one in 10 said that they had actually reported it to the authorities (6 per cent).

“Overwhelmingly the survey showed that of those who reported an incident of corruption to the authorities, not one respondent said that the authorities took action against the government officials involved.”

This was despite the survey’s finding that one in Bahamian adults paid a bribe within the past year to access six different types of public service - the police, ID documents, utility providers, the courts, healthcare and the courts.

The results showed that one in eight Bahamians, some 13 per cent, who had contact with the police in

the year prior to October 2017 “had paid a bribe in order to get the services they need”.

While ‘rent seeking’ was most prevalent in the public’s dealings with the police, the Transparency International report found that illicit payments to agencies such as Immigration (work permits, residency permits), the Road Traffic Department (driver’s licences) and Passport Office, plus publicly-owned utilities, were not far behind.

“Utility providers and the process of obtaining identity documents, such as passports and driver’s licences, were also affected by bribery, with one in nine people who came into contact with these public service providers in the previous 12 months paying a bribe in order to get the services they needed (11 per cent for each),” the Corruption Barometer survey found.

“Bribery in the courts was also reported, with one in 10 people who came into contact with the courts having paid a bribe in the previous 12 months, demonstrating that there is still an acute corruption risk in this key law and order institution (10 per cent).”

The findings thus indicate how corruption is seemingly undermining the ‘rule of law’ and public safety, plus the Bahamas’ ability to police its borders and determine who can reside in the country.

Lemarque Campbell, chair of Citizens for a Better Bahamas, the local Transparency International affiliate, told Tribune Business yesterday that “we all lose” as a result of corruption, with the Government’s “bleeding” resulting in higher taxes and other costs for all businesses and residents.

THE TRIBUNE He suggested that corruption had become “a cultural element in the mindset of Bahamians”, with many adopting the attitude that they needed to “cheat the system” to get ahead in life regardless of the wider problems this created for the country’s democratic institutions and good governance.

Calling for the Minnis administration to place combating corruption at “the top of its agenda”, as it has repeatedly promised, Mr Campbell warned that this was critical to creating a fairer society for all Bahamians.

“Corruption affects us all,” Mr Campbell told Tribune Business. “It’s rooted in the fabric of society. It should be at the top of the Government’s agenda. You negate corruption, you ensure you have more government revenue coming in, you have a fairer system for people to live in.

“At the end of the day, we all lose from corruption.

Money bleeds from the Government so we have to pay increased taxes....... It’s a cultural element in the mindset of Bahamians. In some countries it’s an issue where you have to engage in corruption to survive.

Here it’s ‘you cheat the system to get more ahead’.

It’s a cultural element and a psychological element when you look at corruption in its entirety.”

The Bahamas’ results in the Corruption Barometer were not dissimilar to those for Caribbean rivals.

“We found that one in ten Bahamians who had come into contact with a public service in the previous 12 months had paid a bribe (10 per cent),” the report said.

“This figure puts the Bahamas between Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago, whose bribery rates over

the last 12 months were 21 per cent and 6 per cent respectively.”

However, Mr Campbell revealed that the Royal Bahamas Police Force (RBPF) had scored an unwanted first by becoming the first such organisation in the Caribbean to rank top for both receiving bribery payments and being perceived as the country’s most corrupt public institution.

This, the Citizens for a Better Bahamas chair added, also helped to explain why so few Bahamians were willing to report bribery demands and other corruption forms, given that the RBPF will be charged with investigating all such complaints.

“Low reporting rates of corruption are not surprising in the Bahamas, given that respondents to the survey perceived the police as the most highly corrupt public institution, along with the fact that the police was also the public service with the highest bribery rates,” the Transparency International survey found.

“These results show that the inadequate action of authorities, along with the high risk of retaliation and negative consequences, may deter most individuals from actually coming forward and reporting cases of corruption in the Bahamas.

“Furthermore, this suggests that the lack of a whistleblower protection policy in the Bahamas may also be a contributing factor for individuals not coming forward and reporting corruption.”

When asked why people did not report corruption, some 44 per cent of survey respondents said they were “too afraid of the consequences”. Another 19 per cent expressed the view that “nothing will be done”

if such reports are made, while 7 per cent were concerned that officials they would have to report to “are also corrupt”. A further 5 per cent held the view that corruption was “normal”, and that “everyone does it”.

The survey results again highlight how actual corruption, and perceptions of corruption, continue to prevent the Bahamas’ development as a meritocracy. Besides imposing extra costs on all Bahamians and local businesses, it represents a scourge leading to an inequitable society where certain persons are able to ‘game the system’ while depriving taxpayers of ‘value for money’.

Corruption can take many forms, and be as simple as persons paying for a public official’s lunch to ensure they ‘jump the queue’ or obtain an essential permit they would normally get.

Based on the findings, Transparency International called for the Government to “clean up the police” by reinforcing internal discipline and establishing mechanisms to provide “permanent accountability and integrity”.

Besides strengthening the police force’s ability to investigate corruption, bribery and ‘white collar’ crimes, the report also urged better protection for ‘whistleblowers’ in a bid to encourage Bahamians to report such offences to the authorities.

“The Bahamian government should create actual accessible, anonymous reporting channels for whistleblowers, which guarantee their protection from all form of retaliation,” the Corruption Barometer survey urged.

Mr Campbell told Tribune Business there was “a lot of work to be done” to close-off what he described as “loopholes”, adding that the survey’s findings showed corruption - and perceptions of corruption stretched from the very top of Bahamian society all the way to the bottom.

“It shows how corruption comes straight from the top and comes from the bottom, where people pay a bribe,” he said. “It’s not just the politicians; it shows the people themselves are engaging in corruption. It’s a two-way street.”

Mr Campbell argued that addressing inefficiencies in public services and the ‘ease of doing business’ would go a long way to reducing corruption, reducing the incentive to pay bribes to ‘jump the queue’ for services and permits.

“Until we address a lot of the inefficiencies in public services, corruption will not be mitigated,” he added.

“For ID documents, instead of having face-to-face contact with government officials, it has to move to e-government and an electronic platform. It enhances the ease of doing business and decreases corruption in that area.”

Mr Campbell backed the Government’s planned public procurement process reforms as “a significant step forward”, but urged it to further enhance transparency and accountability through Freedom of Information and Public Disclosure Act implementations.

He added that the Corruption Barometer survey would likely be repeated in two years’ time, in a bid to assess the Bahamas’ and government’s progress, acting as “a report card”.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, April 26, 2018, PAGE 5

Tourism eyes team-up with Black Enterprise THE head of African American media group, Black Enterprise (BE), has pledged to send potential group business worth millions of dollars to the Bahamas.

Earl ‘Butch’ Graves Jr, president and chief executive, led a delegation to the Bahamas that pledged to forge a partnership with this nation.

At a meeting with Dionisio D’Aguilar, minister of tourism and aviation, Mr Graves outlined a number of events his organisation could host in the Bahamas over the next two years. These include the Women of Power (WOP) Summit, a four-day executive leadership conference; the Women of Power Executive Retreat; and the BE Executive Golf Outing.

The Bahamas has already been able to attract several groups as a result of its association, participation and sponsorship of Black Enterprise events in the US. One event, Soul Reborn Conference, is

scheduled to take place in Bimini at the Hilton Resort from July 12-15.

The Soul Reborn Conference is expecting an attendance of about 150, and has been organised by author, speaker and success coach, Cheryl Polote-Williamson.

Disney is also looking at hosting its Women of Power 2018-2019 retreat, featuring some 40 women, in Nassau or one of the Family Islands.

Linville Johnson, Ministry of Tourism director for the multicultural market, hosted the Black Enterprise (BE) group during their Bahamas visit.

He said the partnership between Black Enterprise and the Bahamas has been a long one that began with Earl Graves Senior, with the visit of Earl Graves Jr “cementing the relationship and taking it to an even greater level.”

Mr Johnson said he is “looking forward to the proposed groups and to the strong financial impact they will have on the islands of the Bahamas”.

SHOWN (l-r): Earl ‘Butch’ Graves Jr., president and chief executive of Black Enterprise; Dionisio D’Aguilar, minister of tourism and aviation; Yolanda Cook, personal executive assistant to Mr Graves; Linville Johnson, director, multicultural market, Ministry of Tourism; and Kyle Allman, Black Enterprise’s senior vice-president and national director, multimedia sales and sponsorships.

EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY Comfort Suites Paradise Island is looking for an ambitious career-oriented individual for the following position:

SOUS CHEF

The role of the Sous Chef is to prepare culinary delights for our guest and execute the menu, ensuring a high level of performance, guest satisfaction and profitability.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES • Assist with the management of the day-to-day operation of the kitchen, coordinate food production schedules and ensure the highest level of food quality, taste and presentation.

• Participate in actual food preparation, produce food of consistently high quality, taste and presentation.

• Assist with the creation of new menus.

• Control food cost by assisting in training kitchen staff on the proper methods of food preparation and handling.

• Assist with the anticipation of trends, enacting approved profit-oriented and cost saving ideas/activities.

Position Requirements: • A minimum of three (3) years of Culinary and supervisory experience required.

• An associate’s degree from a Culinary School of Arts or an equivalent is required.

NOTICE TO SHAREHOLDERS The Board of Directors of Finance Corporation of Bahamas Limited hereby notifies its Shareholders that a dividend payment of five cents (5 cents) per Ordinary share in respect of Q1 2018 results will be paid on 1st May, 2018 to all Shareholders of record as at 1st May, 2018.

CORPORATE SECRETARY

Competitive salary and benefits package are commensurate with experience.

Interested persons should submit their resumes via e-mail to rmunroe@comfortsuitespi.com

International Financial Institution is looking for a Relationship Manager for Private Banking Core Responsibilities Expand the client base through the identification and acquisition of new clients. Promote the jurisdiction and the institution and its services in developing markets, possess a book of clients and reports to the Head of Private Banking.

The position is open to candidates who match the following profile: • Bachelor’s Degree in Business or Finance • Minimum 7-10 years advanced experience in, and excellent knowledge of private banking • Has established networks with existing portfolios • Willing to travel • Ability to work under pressure • Flexibility in office hours and hands-on approach when required • Goal oriented, self-motivated, positive attitude and outlook • Excellent oral and written communication, public presentation and client relationship management skills • Proficiency in Microsoft Office • Fluent in English and Spanish (French, German and/or Italian would be an advantage) Interested persons should submit their curriculum vitae along with a cover letter by May 1st 2018.

Private & Confidential Relationship Manager c/o The Tribune Box DA 107040 P.O.Box N-3207 Nassau, The Bahamas

PAGE 6, Thursday, April 26, 2018

THE TRIBUNE

DPM pledges ‘most stringent controls’ on ownership registry FROM PAGE 1 Bahamas in line with both international standards and rival international financial centres (IFCs)). The likes of the US and other major nations have long pushed for the Bahamas to create such a registry, which would act as a one-stop shop for collecting, holding and updating beneficial ownership information on all entities incorporated in this nation. Mr Turnquest told Tribune Business that the registry is necessary to meet the anti-financial crime strictures of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and its affiliates, as well as the Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development’s (OECD) and European Union’s (EU) fight against tax avoidance/evasion.

“It’s also going to be required to facilitate our commitments to the OECD and EU with respect to the automatic exchange of tax information,” he added.

“It’s not a public registry, that is correct.

“One of the FATF’s concerns as well as the other alphabet group’s is that there’s no central repository for information, so there’s potential for gaps that might not be detected because there’s no central registry.”

Beneficial ownership information is currently required to be held and maintained by the local ‘registered agent’ for all Bahamas-domiciled entities, and this will now have to be ‘inputed’ into the registry once its creation is given legal authority by the Bill’s passage.

The registry, though, is not an ‘Open Sesame’ and will not be open to members of the public to conduct ownership information searches on all and sundry. The Bill provides that it can only be accessed by so-called ‘designated persons’, who must either be assigned by the Attorney General’s Office - which has direct responsibility for the registry - or selected by a ‘registered agent’.

The latter can only designate a maximum of two persons, and searches of the registry’s database can only be authorised by the Attorney General’s Office or one of the financial services regulators in response to domestic and overseas supervisory authority requests.

Changes to any entity’s beneficial ownership must be submitted to a registered agent within 15 days, with the latter having an equivalent period of time to update the registry. All ‘designated persons’ must take an ‘oath of confidentiality’, while Bahamian investment funds and companies listed on the Bahamas International Securities Exchange (BISX) are exempted from its provisions.

The Bill’s ‘objects and reasons’ describe it as legislation to enable the Attorney General’s Office “to establish and maintain an electronic database of beneficial ownership details for all corporate and legal entities registered in the Bahamas, and to permit search of the database... by a designated person upon the request of specified authorities designated in the Bill”.

Tribune Business understands that the Bill is based on, and benchmarked against, similar laws already enacted by rival Caribbean IFCs - chiefly the British Virgin Islands and Cayman Islands.

A source close to the Attorney General’s Office, speaking on condition of

anonymity, reiterated that the registry “is not open and accessible to the general public”, but only by ‘designated persons’ acting on a request from law enforcement and overseas regulatory authorities.

They added that the registry would not be abused for “fishing expeditions”, with all searches based on specific requests and facts.

“There will be, to the extent humanly possible, no possibility of anyone accessing the server to do fishing expedition searches,” the source said.

However, Tribune Business was told that the Bahamian financial services industry and its clients were caught off-guard by the Bill’s tabling in Parliament yesterday, as there had been no prior disclosure of - or consultation on - its contents.

Ryan Pinder, the former financial services minister, told Tribune Business that he had “never seen a copy of the legislation prior to its tabling, which is a bit unorthodox”.

He and other attorneys at the Graham, Thompson & Company law firm were taking “a long, hard look at it to see what it presents”, with ‘news already having travelled fast’ and being picked up by clients.

Disclosing that data protection concerns were high on client agendas, Mr Pinder said the absence of prior disclosure and consultation had left attorneys and the wider financial services industry unable to properly advise them.

“These are the type of questions clients are already asking, and without consultation and detailed review prior to the Bill’s release we are unable to give the intelligent answers they’re looking for,” he told Tribune Business.

“This is very delicate and sensitive information, and certainly extremely sensitive in this era of data protection and leaks. That’s a very important element of this, and clients are most concerned about data leaks.”

Financial services is based on confidentiality, a concept that the Bahamas previously exploited to the max. However, the registry and legislation to create it are further evidence of the transparent world the Bahamas now competes in.

Mr Pinder said different jurisdictions had taken different approaches, with the BVI placing its central ownership registry “in the cloud”, but Cayman not connecting it to either the cloud or Internet to make hacking even more difficult.

Mr Turnquest yesterday said it was “not accurate” to suggest there was little to no consultation on the Register of Beneficial Ownership Bill, adding that this had been under the purview of the Attorney General’s Office.

But Mr Pinder said: “There was no indication to industry as far as I’m concerned, and I work closely in these matters, that this Bill was even drafted.

There was no notice, no consultation.”

He added that the Register of Beneficial Ownership Bill should not have been “bundled” with the Multinational Entities Financial Reporting Bill, which was also tabled in Parliament yesterday.

Mr Pinder said they dealt with “important but separate” issues for the financial services industry, with the first focused on transparency and the latter on dealing with the OECD’s Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) initiative.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, April 26, 2018, PAGE 7

Fraud, evasion fears block tax breaks on Over-the-Hill goods FROM PAGE 1 transparently back out all duties from existing stock to take advantage of duty exemptions,” the ‘White Paper’ said. “If implemented, this would have had to have been applied to a broad range of goods and suppliers, and it would be extremely difficult to prevent and detect goods purchased by retailers in the zone from being resold to merchants out of the zone, thereby resulting in duty arbitrage and leading to substantial revenue leakages.”

As a result, the Government said it will not include such provisions in its incentive package for the proposed Economic Empowerment Zone, which will initially enjoy such status for a five-year period.

The Prime Minister made the economic and social

revival of traditional Overthe-Hill areas an election campaign priority and, almost one year into his tenure, is now seeking to deliver on his promises.

The Government is recommending that the Economic Empowerment Zone’s designation be renewed up to three times for a period of five years each, thereby making the maximum period of time such status can last for some 20 years.

The standard real property tax, Customs and Excise Tax, and Stamp Duty exemptions are proposed for property owners wanting to make a capital investment in upgrading their real estate assets, with the Government proposing “an electronic card system” to monitor and regulate all tax breaks.

Companies in the ‘Zone’ with an annual turnover of

$5 million or less will be able to apply for a ‘Trade Certificate’ exempting them from Business Licence fee payments, although web shops and liquor stores will not be eligible for any tax breaks.

Vehicles for use in a business with a Trade Certificate will also be exempted from import tariffs, although there will be fines and penalties for companies found guilty of fraud and other abuses.

Management of the Economic Empowerment Zone will be linked to the Government’s planned introduction of local government to New Providence, with an Economic Development Agency also set to be created to oversee the initiative.

Legislation for the Agency’s establishment will be circulated for public consultation by 2019.

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PAGE 10, Thursday, April 26, 2018

THE TRIBUNE

‘Riddled with danger: How insurance VAT hits storm victims FROM PAGE 1 contravene the spirit and intent of the VAT Act, as well as “repatriating” claims money that should be received by corporate storm victims.

Pointing out that the Bahamas is one of very few nations to levy VAT on property and casualty premiums, Mr Seymour said this was resulting in the tax being applied to ‘foreign source income’ - reinsurance monies that flowed into this nation in the wake of Hurricane Matthew.

He explained that this violates the principle that VAT only be collected on economic activity within the Bahamas’ borders, while the ‘input’ credit due to insurers’ on claims paid meant the Government was “unwittingly sanctioning” the return to overseas reinsurers of proceeds that should pay for local repairs and recovery.

Echoing recent insurance industry cries, Mr Seymour wrote in a ‘position paper’ sent to Tribune Business: “A closer look at the unintended consequences of such an aggressive policy by the Bahamian government

may explain why most countries have opted not to go down such a perilous path....

“The Government should ‘exempt’ or ‘zero rate’ VAT on insurance products in order to make insurance more affordable for the insured and less complicated to manage and regulate. The present laws lack transparency (most insured entities are unaware that the claims proceeds that they receive include VAT and, therefore, once they are received they owe such amounts to the Government) and hence it is subject to manipulation.”

Explaining his concerns through a hypothetical business in Freeport, where is based, Mr Seymour set out a case where ‘Company A’ paid an annual $200,000 premium for business interruption and asset coverage.

VAT worth $15,000 is paid on the premium, with the Bahamian underwriter assuming 2.5 per cent of the risk and passing the remainder on to a London-based reinsurer, which takes on the 97.5 per cent remainder.

This is a typical insurance industry scenario, and Mr Seymour’s example outlined a situation where

‘Company A’s’ losses were assessed by adjusters at $1.5 million once the 2.5 per cent deductible is paid. With the loss involving $500,000 in property damage, and $1 million in business interruption, the former Chamber president’s example showed $37,500 as due from the Bahamian insurer, with the rest coming from its foreign reinsurance partner.

“Notwithstanding the fact that [the reinsurer] is a foreign entity, and is not a VAT registrant in the Bahamas pursuant to Section 1 (b) of the VAT (Amended Act) 2015, the total claim proceeds of $1.5 million is presumed to include VAT, assessed at the gross rate of 7.5 per cent,” Mr Seymour wrote.

With VAT assessed on ‘Company A’s’ claim proceeds, he added that the Bahamian insurer would seek a VAT ‘input’ credit on the payout that, in his example, worked out to a net $105,151.

“Pursuant to the VAT Act as amended, Company A is now indebted to the Government of the Bahamas, and therefore is required to remit $105,151 to the Inland Revenue Department,” Mr Seymour added,

representing the VAT on the insurance claims proceeds.

‘Company A’ is required to treat this as an ‘output’ for VAT purposes. Once this is paid, the Department of Inland Revenue will then pay the ‘credit’ to the Bahamian insurer. But, as the latter only assumed 2.5 per cent of the risk, the majority of this payment - some $102,522 in Mr Seymour’s example - “is legally required” to be paid to the foreign reinsurer.

Analysing the impact, the accountant told Tribune Business: “Instead of receiving $1.5 million in settlement of its claim, Company A only receives $1.395 million, an amount which is less than the amount of that was agreed to by the loss adjusters and insurers.

“In other words, the value received compared to the cost of the premium is diminished, resulting in Company A’s overall cost of insurance increasing.

[The reinsurer] is refunded $102,522 by the [Bahamian insurer]. In essence, the Government is unwittingly sanctioning the return of the insurance claim proceeds to the foreign

LEGAL NOTICE

LEGAL NOTICE

ZEE-TECK LIMITED

DESERT FLOWER TECHNOLOGY LIMITED

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN as follows: (a) ZEE-TECK LIMITED is in dissolution under the provisions of the International Business Companies Act 2000. (b) The dissolution of the said Company commenced on the 13th day of April, 2018 when its Articles of Dissolution were submitted to and registered by the Registrar General. (c) The Liquidator of the said Company is Mr. Delano Aranha of Ocean Centre, Montagu Foreshore, East Bay Street, P.O. Box N-3247, Nassau, Bahamas.

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN as follows: (a) DESERT FLOWER TECHNOLOGY LIMITED is in dissolution under the provisions of the International Business Companies Act 2000. (b) The dissolution of the said Company commenced on the 13th day of April, 2018 when its Articles of Dissolution were submitted to and registered by the Registrar General. (c) The Liquidator of the said Company is Mr. Delano Aranha of Ocean Centre, Montagu Foreshore, East Bay Street, P.O. Box N-3247, Nassau, Bahamas.

H & J CORPORATE SERVICES LTD.

H & J CORPORATE SERVICES LTD.

Registered Agent for the above-named Company

Registered Agent for the above-named Company

A GLOBAL LEADER IN AUDIT, TAX AND ADVISORY SERVICES

EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES COME JOIN OUR EXTRAORDINARY TEAM AND LET US HELP YOU FIND YOUR PURPOSE!

ABOUT KPMG KPMG is a global network of professional firms providing Audit, Tax, and Advisory services. We operate in 154 countries and territories and have 200,000 professionals working in member firms around the world. Our purpose is to inspire Confidence and Empower Change whereby Our People are Extraordinary. KPMG is The Clear Choice and offers a world of opportunities.

Junior associate, data & analytics and corporate finance services KPMG is looking for a highly motivated and dynamic Junior Associate who will report to the partners and management team of KPMG Advisory Services Ltd. The role has primary responsibility for assisting with a portfolio of data & analytics, corporate finance and transaction services advisory clients.

Key job functions and responsibilities include: • Performing client and project due diligence.

• Supporting various data & analytics projects, aimed at helping clients to solve complex business issues through analysis and visualization of data • Researching and analyzing financial statements, industries, markets and other information.

• Assisting with development of financial and valuation models.

• Assisting with preparation of documents, reports and presentations using Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Power BI. • Maintaining client files in accordance with KPMG guidelines.

• Compiling and maintaining electronic data rooms.

• Maintaining client transaction and marketing databases.

• Maintaining and developing market research and industry research databases.

• Providing support to associates, management team and partners as required.

The Junior Associate is expected to have the following qualifications and attributes: • A Bachelor’s degree in accounting, finance or economics with a minimum GPA of 3.00 overall and in core coursework is required.

• Keen interest in technology and analytics, with a robust understanding of technology used for the processing, analysis and visualization of data.

• Strong preference will be given to those candidates who have completed at least 50% of the examinations toward a recognized finance or data science designation or advanced degree.

• At least one year’s work experience in the financial services or consulting sectors is preferable.

• Strong writing skills and proficiency in the Microsoft Office Suite are essential, while demonstrated competence with such programs as SQL, Alteryx, Tableau, and PowerBI is preferred.

The position also requires a high degree of self-motivation, attention to detail, strong financial, writing and people skills, a willingness to travel, the ability to handle a demanding business environment, to work at one’s own initiative, to meet tight deadlines and to maintain composure under pressure.

OUR OFFER We offer a team-based environment with wonderful opportunities, in our Nassau and Freeport offices, to broaden your professional experience in a varied practice that offers competitive compensation and benefits packages inclusive of medical and pension plans.

Assurance is given that every applicant will be treated in the strictest of confidence. Only applicants who meet the criteria stated above will be contacted.

Applicants should submit a cover letter, resume, transcript and a copy of professional license by Friday, 11 May, 2018 to: Human Resources Manager, KPMG, P.O. Box N123, Nassau, Bahamas or hrbahamas@kpmg.com.bs. © 2018 KPMG, a Bahamas partnership, and a member firm of the KPMG network of independent member firms affiliated with KPMG International Cooperative (“KPMG International”), a Swiss entity. All rights reserved.

reinsurer, to the detriment of... the Bahamian insured.

“By definition, ‘output’ VAT is assessed on a company’s revenues generated within the jurisdiction - the assessment of VAT typically stops at the border. The law, as currently drafted, contravenes this basic tenet by assessing VAT on ‘foreign sourced income’.”

Mr Seymour told Tribune Business that, through the Grand Bahama Chamber, his own research and business contacts, he had learned the Department of Inland Revenue was “very aggressively coming after” companies it claims should have paid VAT on their Hurricane Matthew insurance proceeds.

“I know of at least two instances where they have approached businesses saying they owe funds; in the industrial and retail sectors,” he said. “Whoever could have made a claim in recent years, the VAT Department appears to be coming after them, and if they’re coming to claim those amounts now they’re coming armed to the teeth with penalties and interest.”

Describing this as unfair, Mr Seymour suggested then Government had effectively been caught in a trap of its own making by electing to levy VAT on property and casualty premiums.

Hurricane Matthew’s total nine-figure payout, he explained, had resulted in the Government owing a significant multi-million dollar sum in VAT credits owing to the insurance industry on claims proceeds that it was unable to pay.

This is largely due to the Public Treasury’s cash-strapped state, and Mr Seymour said the

Government now needed to collect from those companies that received insurance payouts so it could meet these credits.

Describing it as “bad law”, he told Tribune Business that the Government needs to be “made accountable for it” and correct its VAT policy towards property and casualty insurance - possibly after a transition period.

“It’s not transparent, it creates uncertainty and, at the end of the day, the funds flow is going in the wrong direction,” Mr Seymour said of the current situation. “My research suggests very few countries have decided to go down this very thorny path. It’s riddled with danger.

“We are going across borders to claw back and reel in as much money as we can get. We are paying the same people [reinsurers] back money they don’t expect to get. The Government is really caught in a situation where insurance companies would like to get their input credits but it is hard pressed to do so because it doesn’t have the money.”

Mr Seymour said the Government’s approach was “discriminatory” because it was only targeting corporate storm victims and not residential homeowners - likely due to the fact the latter are not VAT registrants.

He added that firms were also “trapped” when it came to VAT on business interruption insurance, as this cannot be ‘netted off’ against their inputs. All this, Mr Seymour, suggested, went completely against the rationale that VAT is a ‘consumer tax’ paid by the end user.

ADVERTISE TODAY IN THE TRIBUNE, JUST CALL 502-2394 LEGAL NOTICE

HYBRID INFO LIMITED NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN as follows: (a) HYBRID INFO LIMITED is in dissolution under the provisions of the International Business Companies Act 2000. (b) The dissolution of the said Company commenced on the 13th day of April, 2018 when its Articles of Dissolution were submitted to and registered by the Registrar General. (c) The Liquidator of the said Company is Mr. Delano Aranha of Ocean Centre, Montagu Foreshore, East Bay Street, P.O. Box N-3247, Nassau, Bahamas.

H & J CORPORATE SERVICES LTD. Registered Agent for the above-named Company

LEGAL NOTICE

AKKURATE-TECK LIMITED NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN as follows: (a) AKKURATE-TECK LIMITED is in dissolution under the provisions of the International Business Companies Act 2000. (b) The dissolution of the said Company commenced on the 13th day of April, 2018 when its Articles of Dissolution were submitted to and registered by the Registrar General. (c) The Liquidator of the said Company is Mr. Delano Aranha of Ocean Centre, Montagu Foreshore, East Bay Street, P.O. Box N-3247, Nassau, Bahamas.

H & J CORPORATE SERVICES LTD. Registered Agent for the above-named Company

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, April 26, 2018, PAGE 11

Corporate tax removal paves way for 10-year financial sector ‘molding’ FROM PAGE 1 value proposition is going forward, and incorporate that into the regime and legislation we will have to put in place to address ‘ring fencing’ and economic substance.

“These are opportunities to chart the course for the next 10 years, figure out where the industry is and where we are going, and look at the elements of the economic substance requirements to attract new business to this jurisdiction.”

The now-Graham, Thompson & Co attorney and partner reiterated that the Bahamas could not afford to rush any decision on corporate taxation, as “without proper thought and strategy” the Bahamas will “lose the opportunity and run the risk of throwing the baby out with the bath water”.

“Now we have to work hard. We’re under a timeframe,” Mr Pinder told Tribune Business. “We

now have an opportunity to mould the industry to attract the type of business we want to attract, and attract them to the jurisdiction. This was really a change that was make or break for the industry.”

K P Turnquest, deputy prime minister and minister of finance, yesterday confirmed that the Government had amended the Multinational Entities Financial Reporting Bill in response to industry feedback.

“That is an industry suggestion that we have to deal with ‘ring fencing’ and economic substance in a separate Bill,” he said.

“I think they don’t want to complicate the Bill, it follows the [OECD] model law and these things are very technical.

“As we saw with our conversations with the EU, they are very particular with the language we use. We thought it best to deal with the matter [of the OECD and EU] as separate issues.”

Mr Pinder, meanwhile, described the Multinational

LEGAL NOTICE

VARIETY INVESTMENTS LIMITED NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN as follows: (a) VARIETY INVESTMENTS LIMITED is in dissolution under the provisions of the International Business Companies Act 2000. (b) The dissolution of the said Company commenced on the 13th day of April, 2018 when its Articles of Dissolution were submitted to and registered by the Registrar General. (c) The Liquidator of the said Company is Mr. Delano Aranha of Ocean Centre, Montagu Foreshore, East Bay Street, P.O. Box N-3247, Nassau, Bahama.

H & J CORPORATE SERVICES LTD. Registered Agent for the above-named Company

LEGAL NOTICE

TRI-COLOR LIMITED NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN as follows: (a) TRI-COLOR LIMITED is in dissolution under the provisions of the International Business Companies Act 2000. (b) The dissolution of the said Company commenced on the 13th day of April, 2018 when its Articles of Dissolution were submitted to and registered by the Registrar General. (c) The Liquidator of the said Company is Mr. Delano Aranha of Ocean Centre, Montagu Foreshore, East Bay Street, P.O. Box N-3247, Nassau, Bahamas.

H & J CORPORATE SERVICES LTD. Registered Agent for the above-named Company

LEGAL NOTICE

OMGRAND LIMITED NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN as follows: (a) OMGRAND LIMITED is in dissolution under the provisions of the International Business Companies Act 2000. (b) The dissolution of the said Company commenced on the 13th day of April, 2018 when its Articles of Dissolution were submitted to and registered by the Registrar General. (c) The Liquidator of the said Company is Mr. Delano Aranha of Ocean Centre, Montagu Foreshore, East Bay Street, P.O. Box N-3247, Nassau, Bahamas H & J CORPORATE SERVICES LTD. Registered Agent for the above-named Company

Entities Financial Reporting Bill as “materially different” from its initial version, and said “isolating” the OECD’s Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) initiative from the EU’s demands was “the right way to do it”.

“You deal with it in isolation,” he added. “They’re material to industry, send shock waves through the industry, and how you approach them is determinant on the future of the industry and how it looks going forward.”

Tribune Business revealed last week that the Government had dumped ‘ring fencing’ and corporate taxation from the latest version of the Bill.

The EU and OECD initiatives, while linked and attempting to combat tax

avoidance, are dealing with separate issues, and the financial services industry had urged the Government to deal with them via standalone legislation.

The Multinational Entities Financial Reporting Bill’s initial draft sought to tackle BEPS and the EU’s ‘ring fencing’ mandate in the law, but the latest version now completely removes the section that dealt with the latter.

Apart from stripping out the clause that eliminated ‘ring fencing’, the adjustments also dump the ‘schedule’ that allowed the Minister of Finance the ability to impose corporate taxation on a wide variety of financial services products ranging from International Business Companies (IBCs) to foundations, Executive

ADVERTISE TODAY IN THE TRIBUNE, JUST CALL 502-2394

Entities and Investment Condominiums (ICONs).

Many financial services industry executives and clients will likely be relieved that corporate taxation has been dumped, at least for the moment, given that its

potential introduction had caused tremendous uncertainty - especially given that it seemingly provided for implementation ‘at the stroke of a pen’, although this was later refuted by the Deputy Prime Minister.

LEGAL NOTICE

WALITECK SERVICES LIMITED NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN as follows: (a) WALITECK SERVICES LIMITED is in dissolution under the provisions of the International Business Companies Act 2000. (b) The dissolution of the said Company commenced on the 13th day of April, 2018 when its Articles of Dissolution were submitted to and registered by the Registrar General. (c) The Liquidator of the said Company is Mr. Delano Aranha of Ocean Centre, Montagu Foreshore, East Bay Street, P.O. Box N-3247, Nassau, Bahamas.

H & J CORPORATE SERVICES LTD. Registered Agent for the above-named Company

LEGAL NOTICE

OWZ SERVICES LIMITED NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN as follows:

LEGAL NOTICE

OMSPLENDOR LIMITED NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN as follows: (a) OMSPLENDOR LIMITED is in dissolution under the provisions of the International Business Companies Act 2000. (b) The dissolution of the said Company commenced on the 13th day of April, 2018 when its Articles of Dissolution were submitted to and registered by the Registrar General. (c) The Liquidator of the said Company is Mr. Delano Aranha of Ocean Centre, Montagu Foreshore, East Bay Street, P.O. Box N-3247, Nassau, Bahamas.

H & J CORPORATE SERVICES LTD. Registered Agent for the above-named Company

(a) OWZ SERVICES LIMITED is in dissolution under the provisions of the International Business Companies Act 2000. (b) The dissolution of the said Company commenced on the 13th day of April, 2018 when its Articles of Dissolution were submitted to and registered by the Registrar General. (c) The Liquidator of the said Company is Mr. Delano Aranha of Ocean Centre, Montagu Foreshore, East Bay Street, P.O. Box N-3247, Nassau, Bahamas.

H & J CORPORATE SERVICES LTD. Registered Agent for the above-named Company

PAGE 12, Thursday, April 26, 2018

THE TRIBUNE

NOTICE

A GLOBAL LEADER IN AUDIT, TAX AND ADVISORY SERVICES

EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES COME JOIN OUR EXTRAORDINARY TEAM AND LET US HELP YOU FIND YOUR PURPOSE!

ABOUT KPMG KPMG is a global network of professional firms providing Audit, Tax, and Advisory services. We operate in 154 countries and territories and have 200,000 professionals working in member firms around the world. Our purpose is to inspire Confidence and Empower Change whereby Our People are Extraordinary. KPMG is The Clear Choice and offers a world of opportunities.

ASSISTANT MANAGER/MANAGER, CORPORATE FINANCE AND DATA & ANALYTICS SERVICES KPMG is looking for a highly motivated and dynamic Assistant Manager or Manager who will report to the partners and management team of KPMG Advisory Services Ltd. The role has primary responsibility for managing a portfolio of corporate finance, data & analytics and transaction services advisory clients.

Key job functions and responsibilities include: • Overseeing the development and evaluation of various advisory engagements, which may involve financial modeling, valuation analyses, data & analytics projects, detailed financial and commercial due diligence, credit and debt capacity analysis, and preparation of information memoranda, term sheets, and other documentation and reports for external consumption.

• Working in various sectors including financial services, infrastructure, public sector, and tourism and hospitality.

• Acting as project manager for the duration of engagements, acting as key contact for the client, attending client meetings, leading particular sections of work and coordinating the work of junior staff.

• Assisting in new business development including the preparation and presentation of proposals.

• Negotiating alongside clients on transactions.

• Ensuring adherence to all compliance and regulatory rules.

• Reporting to clients, partners and the management team on engagement progress.

• Managing and coaching people.

• Speaking in public forums.

The Assistant Manager/Manager is expected to have the following qualifications and attributes: • A Bachelor’s degree from a recognized university and a minimum of four years relevant work experience are required.

• An advanced degree in finance or business and/or designation such as Chartered Financial Analyst, Accredited Senior Appraiser, or Chartered Business Valuator is preferred.

• A keen eye for detail, superior financial and writing skills, strong people skills, the ability to work at one’s own initiative, the willingness to travel at relatively short notice, and the ability to meet tight deadlines.

• An interest in technology and analytics, with a strong understanding of technology used for the processing, analysis and visualization of data is a plus.

• Be fully proficient in the Microsoft office suite of products and electronic research tools, and ideally have experience with a range of data analysis and visualization programs.

NOTICE is hereby given that KENNY ANTOINE of Pigeon Peas, Marsh Harbour, Abaco, Bahamas is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for registration/naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 19th day of April, 2018 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, Bahamas.

NOTICE

NOTICE is hereby given that MACKNI LORFILS of 1107 NW 6TH Street, Apt E, Gainesville, Fl 32601 is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for registration/naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/ naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 19th day of April, 2018 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, Bahamas.

NOTICE

NOTICE is hereby given that JEFFERY JOSEPH of Pigeon Peas, Marsh Harbour, Abaco, Bahamas is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for registration/naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 19th day of April, 2018 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, Bahamas.

NOTICE NPDC WATER COMPANY LIMITED (In Voluntary Liquidation)

OUR OFFER We offer a team-based environment with wonderful opportunities, in our Nassau and Freeport offices, to broaden your professional experience in a varied practice that offers competitive compensation and benefits packages inclusive of medical and pension plans.

Assurance is given that every applicant will be treated in the strictest of confidence. Only applicants who meet the criteria stated above will be contacted.

Applicants should submit a cover letter, resume and a copy of professional license by Friday, 11 May, 2018 to: Human Resources Manager, KPMG, P.O. Box N123, Nassau, Bahamas or hrbahamas@kpmg.com.bs. © 2018 KPMG, a Bahamas partnership, and a member firm of the KPMG network of independent member firms affiliated with KPMG International Cooperative (“KPMG International”), a Swiss entity. All rights reserved.

MARKET REPORT WEDNESDAY, 25 APRIL 2018

t. 242.323.2330 | f. 242.323.2320 | www.bisxbahamas.com

BISX ALL SHARE INDEX: CLOSE 1,971.05 | CHG -3.23 | %CHG -0.16 | YTD -92.52 | YTD% -4.48

Registration number: 60655c Notice is hereby given, pursuant to Section 239 (2) of the Companies Act 1992, that the final meeting of the above named company will be held at the Registered Office of the Company, Gail Lockhart Charles & Co., #4 Pineapple Grove, Western Road, Nassau, New Providence, Bahamas on 26th May, 2018 at 9:00a.m. for the purpose of laying before the meeting an account showing how the winding up has been conducted and the company’s property disposed of and of hearing any explanation that may be given by the joint liquidators and to determine whether the joint liquidators should have their release.

Philip Simon Liquidator

BISX LISTED & TRADED SECURITIES 52WK HI 4.31 19.17 7.50 3.76 1.64 0.19 4.50 8.80 6.60 5.30 11.50 2.59 1.56 9.25 6.10 10.55 8.10 13.67 12.51 11.00

52WK LOW 3.50 17.43 7.50 3.32 0.90 0.12 3.30 8.40 6.00 3.15 9.00 2.18 1.40 7.30 6.00 8.78 5.67 3.35 12.01 10.00

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SECURITY AML Foods Limited APD Limited Bahamas Property Fund Bahamas Waste Bank of Bahamas Benchmark Cable Bahamas CIBC FirstCaribbean Bank Colina Holdings Commonwealth Bank Commonwealth Brewery Consolidated Water BDRs Doctor's Hospital Emera Incorporated Famguard Fidelity Bank Finco Focol J. S. Johnson Premier Real Estate Cable Bahamas Series 6 Cable Bahamas Series 8 Cable Bahamas Series 9 Cable Bahamas Series 10 Colina Holdings Class A Commonwealth Bank Class E Commonwealth Bank Class J Commonwealth Bank Class K Commonwealth Bank Class L Commonwealth Bank Class M Commonwealth Bank Class N Fidelity Bank Class A Focol Class B

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SECURITY Fidelity Bank Note 18 (Series E) + Fidelity Bank Note 22 (Series B) +

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BAH29 BG0203 BG0105 BG0205 BG0107 BG0207 BG0130 BG0230 BG0303 BG0305 BG0307 BG0330 BG0403 BG0405 BG0407

BAHAMAS GOVERNMENT STOCK - (percentage pricing) 115.92 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00

104.79 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00

MUTUAL FUNDS 52WK HI 2.13 4.14 1.99 178.69 153.40 1.54 1.70 1.62 1.10 6.99 8.54 6.15 10.52 11.46 10.46

52WK LOW 1.67 3.04 1.68 164.74 116.70 1.48 1.62 1.57 1.04 6.41 7.62 5.66 8.65 10.54 9.57

CLOSE 4.25 17.43 9.09 3.35 1.00 0.18 3.35 8.80 6.10 4.13 10.02 2.87 1.50 7.66 6.10 10.44 6.43 4.29 12.51 10.00

CHANGE 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 -0.05 0.00 0.00 -0.01 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1.00 100.00 100.00 100.40 100.00 100.00 100.00 10.00 1.00

1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1.00 100.00 100.00 100.40 100.00 100.00 100.00 10.00 1.00

0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

LAST SALE 100.00 100.00

CLOSE 100.00 100.00

CHANGE 0.00 0.00

109.62 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00

-0.35 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

109.97 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00

FUND CFAL Bond Fund CFAL Balanced Fund CFAL Money Market Fund CFAL Global Bond Fund CFAL Global Equity Fund FG Financial Preferred Income Fund FG Financial Growth Fund FG Financial Diversified Fund FG Financial Global USD Bond Fund Royal Fidelity Bahamas Opportunities Fund - Secured Balanced Fund Royal Fidelity Bahamas Opportunities Fund - Targeted Equity Fund Royal Fidelity Bahamas Opportunities Fund - Prime Income Fund Royal Fidelity Int'l Fund - Equities Sub Fund Royal Fidelity Int'l Fund - High Yield Fund Royal Fidelity Int'l Fund - Alternative Strategies Fund

VOLUME 50

11,000 281

VOLUME

EPS$ 0.361 0.932 -0.306 0.281 -1.133 0.000 -1.465 0.638 0.573 0.171 0.631 0.102 0.330 0.000 1.129 0.743 0.832 0.293 0.543 0.000

DIV$ 0.080 1.130 0.000 0.230 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.320 0.220 0.120 0.690 0.060 0.050 0.084 0.300 0.500 0.150 0.120 0.570 0.000

P/E 11.8 18.7 N/M 11.9 N/M N/M -2.3 13.8 10.6 24.2 15.9 28.1 4.5 N/M 5.4 14.1 7.7 14.6 23.0 0.0

YIELD 1.88% 6.48% 0.00% 6.87% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 3.64% 3.61% 2.91% 6.89% 2.09% 3.33% 1.10% 4.92% 4.79% 2.33% 2.80% 4.56% 0.00%

0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000

0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000

0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 6.25% 6.25% 6.25% 6.25% 6.25% 6.25% 6.25% 7.00% 6.50%

INTEREST 6.00% Prime + 1.75% 6.95% 4.00% 4.25% 4.25% 4.50% 4.50% 6.25% 6.25% 4.00% 4.25% 4.50% 6.25% 3.50% 3.88% 4.25%

NAV 2.14 4.13 2.00 179.39 135.02 1.54 1.69 1.62 1.09 7.16 8.22 6.39 11.30 11.67 10.19

YTD% 12 MTH% 0.31% 4.30% 0.16% 5.93% 0.17% 2.36% 4.66% 3.89% 5.58% 6.65% 0.36% 4.29% -0.15% 3.50% 0.23% 3.89% -0.34% 4.66% -1.08% 1.77% -5.96% -3.05% 1.90% 4.59% 7.24% 11.96% 2.77% 3.88% 3.94% 4.69%

MARKET TERMS BISX ALL SHARE INDEX - 19 Dec 02 = 1,000.00 52wk-Hi - Highest closing price in last 52 weeks 52wk-Low - Lowest closing price in last 52 weeks Previous Close - Previous day's weighted price for daily volume Today's Close - Current day's weighted price for daily volume Change - Change in closing price from day to day Daily Vol. - Number of total shares traded today DIV $ - Dividends per share paid in the last 12 months P/E - Closing price divided by the last 12 month earnings

4 | FG CAPITAL MARKETS 242-396-4000 | COLONIAL 242-502-7525 | LENO 242-396-3225

YIELD - last 12 month dividends divided by closing price Bid $ - Buying price of Colina and Fidelity Ask $ - Selling price of Colina and fidelity Last Price - Last traded over-the-counter price Weekly Vol. - Trading volume of the prior week EPS $ - A company's reported earnings per share for the last 12 mths NAV - Net Asset Value N/M - Not Meaningful

MATURITY 31-May-2018 19-Oct-2022 20-Nov-2029 30-Jul-2018 16-Dec-2019 30-Jul-2020 15-Dec-2021 30-Jul-2022 15-Dec-2044 30-Jul-2045 26-Jun-2018 26-Jun-2020 26-Jun-2022 26-Jun-2045 15-Oct-2018 15-Oct-2020 15-Oct-2022 NAV Date 31-Mar-2018 31-Mar-2018 30-Mar-2018 31-Mar-2018 31-Mar-2018 31-Jan-2018 31-Jan-2018 31-Jan-2018 31-Jan-2018 29-Mar-2018 29-Mar-2018 29-Mar-2018 29-Mar-2018 29-Mar-2018 29-Mar-2018

LEGAL NOTICE INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS COMPANIES ACT, 2000

SUMMER CYPRESS HOLDINGS LIMITED NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN in accordance with Section 138 (4) of the International Business Companies Act, 2000, as follows: a) SUMMER CYPRESS HOLDINGS LIMITED is in dissolution under the provisions of the International Business Companies Act, 2000. b) The dissolution of the said Company commenced on 16th March, 2018. c) The Liquidator of the said Company is Amicorp Bahamas Management Limited whose address is: Bahamas Financial Centre, 2nd Floor, Shirley & Charlotte Street, P.O. Box N-4865, Nassau, Bahamas.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, April 26, 2018, PAGE 13

VACANCIES

Career opportunities are available for ambitious career-oriented individuals at a mid size hotel. We are inviting experienced persons to apply for the following positions:

Sales Coordinator Potential applicants must possess the following qualities: • Three years experience at a major company or hotel in a similar position • The ability to work independently • Proficiency in Microsoft Word and Excel spreadsheets • Excellent oral and written skills Responsibilities for the position: • Assist with the preparation of sales reports • Prepare written correspondence and follow up with clients • Oversee all set up and break down of functions

Sales Manager Potential applicants must possess the following qualities: • 5 years experience at a major company or hotel in a similar position • The ability to work independently • Proficiency in Microsoft Word and Excel spreadsheets • Excellent oral and written skills Responsibilities for the position: • Assist the Director of Sales with the preparation of sales reports and budgets • Liaise with various departments on groups and corporate clients • Assist with the booking of groups • Prepare group, corporate and tour operator contracts • Monitor all tour operator activity and advertising feedback • Assist with the monitoring of company’s on-line information website • Assist with the preparation of all PR correspondence internationally and locally Salary is commensurate with qualifications Interested persons should apply in writing via email to

availablejobstodate@outlook.com