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WEDNESDAY, MAY 17, 2017
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Bahamian businesses hit worst by gun crime By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
The Bahamas leads the Caribbean when it comes to the victimisation of businesses by gun violence and Internet fraud, with crimerelated costs higher here than anywhere else in this region A new Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) study yesterday further exposed crime’s true cost for the Bahamian economy and society, with more than 20 per cent of crime-hit local businesses victimised by gun-toting armed robbers. The report, ‘Restoring Paradise in the Caribbean’, also found that Bahamian businesses had been hardest hit by cyber crime and Internet-based fraud, with four out of every 10 impacted. “Overall, 17 per cent of firms surveyed in the 13 Caribbean countries reported Internet fraud,” the IDB report’s authors found. “Cyber-crime appears to be a bigger problem in the Bahamas and Trinidad and Tobago, with 41 per cent and 33 per cent of all businesses, respectively, reporting Internet fraud in
Study finds nation leads Caribbean on Internet crime Crime’s private sector cost highest in Bahamas Nation losing $268m to $408m annually the last year. No businesses reported this crime in Jamaica and Barbados and only 4 per cent (five firms) experienced Internet fraud in Suriname.” No explanation was provided for the high level of Internet-based crime in the Bahamas, but the report found that companies in this nation were also impacted most by gun crime and armed robberies. “The use of guns was highest in the Bahamas, Jamaica, and Trinidad and Tobago,” the IDB report said, with just over 20 per cent of crime-hit Bahamian businesses suffering from this. This was the highest in the region, exceeding the See pg b5
DPM: BOB rescue ‘hasn’t worked’ as losses grow 61% By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
New Board will see ‘how best to deal’ with crisis bank
The Deputy Prime Minister yesterday declared that all efforts to rescue stricken Bank of the Bahamas (BOB) have “obviously not worked to-date”, after the insolvent institution’s losses jumped 61 per cent for the 2017 financial year to-date. K P Turnquest told Tribune Business that the BISX-listed institution’s new Board, set to be appointed imminently by the new government, would be charged with determining “how best to deal” with its numerous problems. Pledging that the Dr Hubert Minnis-led administration will continue to stand behind BOB, especially since the Government is its 79 per cent majority shareholder, Mr Turnquest said “critical decisions” had to be made on the loss-making bank that threatens to become a continual drain on taxpayers. “I think the situation at Bank of the Bahamas is well known. It is an issue we ought to be very careful about,” the Deputy Prime Minister said, after BOB reported its results for the nine months to end-March 2017. “Nonetheless, having said all that, the Government of the Bahamas will See pg b6
A former Cabinet minister yesterday urged the new government to “fully disclose” the energy supply deal entered into by its predecessor, questioning who would finance the multi-million dollar BPL “conversion” bill. Phenton Neymour, who had ministerial responsibility for BEC between 20072012, told Tribune Business that it was “unacceptable” for the former Christie administration process to have run such a secretive bidding process for so important an asset. He questioned what the previous government “had to hide” in soliciting bids for new fuel supply for BEC’s successor entity, Bahamas Power & Light (BPL), if the agreement signed by the Christie Cabinet was as beneficial as claimed. See pg b4
Ex-minister’s fear on multi-million ‘convert’ bill Slams former Govt’s secrecy as ‘unacceptable’ Worried any deal may impede actions over BPL
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Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
The Central Bank yesterday made good on its pledge to introduce electronic payments regulation by mid-year 2017, unveiling a short one-month consultation on the proposed supervisory framework. The regulator, in a statement,
Govt takes just 1/3 of BOB bond Subscribes for just $10m of total $30 million issue Regulator concerns likely to have interfered Shareholder demands AGM and chairman change
Loan loss provisions jump over 50% to end-March
By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
BISX-listed bank insolvent without $100m bond
The Government took up just one-third of Bank of the Bahamas’ controversial $30 million bond issue, which is now at the centre of the latter’s regulatory dispute with the Central Bank. The troubled BISX-listed institution’s results for the nine months to end-March 31, 2017, which were released yesterday, revealed that the former Christie administration took up only one of the three $10 million contingent convertible bond issues. “The bank offered a private placement of $30 million at 3.125 per cent fixed rate Perpetual Contingent Convertible Bonds to accredited investors only,” BOB’s financial statement notes said. “This private placement was offered in three tranches of $10 million each. The first tranche has been subscribed by and issued to the Government as at December 31, 2016. This private placement offering has ended and closed on February 28, 2017.” Capital markets analysts believe the bonds, with their extremely low interest rate yields, were structured so that the sole purchaser would be the Government, See pg b5
K Peter Turnquest
Govt urged: ‘Fully disclose’ Central Bank makes good on e-payment regulation promise Christie’s BPL agreements By NEIL HARTNELL acknowledged that the feedBy NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
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back deadline was “abbreviated” to allow it to vet and license existing providers of electronic payments solutions. It confirmed that the Payment Instruments (Oversight) Regulations 2017, released yesterday, were the first step towards licensing non-bank providers via a formal supervisory framework, bringing them See pg b7
Hits mid-year target on consultation launch Sets ‘abbreviated’ one-month consultation