business@tribunemedia.net
THURSDAY, JUNE 6, 2024
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Broker’s bids to knock out Bahamians’ testimonies By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net A FORMER Nassau broker/ dealer is demanding that Supreme Court depositions given by his former Bahamian executives be barred from evidence at trial because they are “unfair” and unreliable”. Guy Gentile, head of the nowdefunct Mintbroker International, in May 17, 2024, legal filings asserted that the testimony given by his exemployees creates “considerable fairness concerns” and US federal regulators should not be permitted to employ it against him. In particular, he is arguing that his Bahamian attorney, Philip McKenzie KC of Davis & Co, was not given a proper opportunity by the Supreme Court to cross-examine and question former members of Mintbroker’s management team. All were deposed following the Securities & Exchange Commission’s (SEC) request for judicial assistance from The Bahamas to aid its case against Mr Gentile. Bahamas-based witnesses and evidence are central to the Florida courtroom battle, with the federal
t (FOUJMF &Y TUBGG FWJEFODF AVOGBJS BOE AVOSFMJBCMF t 4BZT %BWJT $P T ,$ VOBCMF UP DSPTT FYBNJOF t %FNBOET JU CF CBSSFE GSPN VQDPNJOH 4&$ USJBM securities regulator accusing the former Bay Street-based broker/ dealer and its principal of breaching US law by actively - and directly soliciting American clients when not registered with the SEC. Mr Gentile has placed great emphasis on trying to strike out, or have dismissed, much of this Bahamian evidence and the south Florida federal court has yet to rule on his
demands to block the former employees’ testimony from being entered into evidence. The SEC, in its rebuttal, said whether Mr McKenGUY GENTILE zie chose to cross-examine the witnesses or not was up to him and “should not be given any weight”. However Mr Gentile, who plans to testify in his defence during the trial, argued that the transcripts detailing his former employees’ testimonies should be “excluded” from trial evidence as there was no proof that the SEC had sought to secure their inperson attendance. And, even if it was proven that the Bahamian staff are unavailable, he added the transcripts “raise numerous issues as to their reliability and fairness”. “The transcripts obtained to date from depositions in The Bahamas
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$250m Six Senses developer pledges to ‘go the extra mile’ By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net THE developer of Grand Bahama’s $250m Six Senses resort yesterday pledged to “go the extra mile” after receiving a key permit that “opens up the starting line” for construction to begin before year-end. Marc Weller, Weller Development’s founding partner and president, told Tribune Business that obtaining the required environmental approvals from the Government’s regulators paves the way for a project that will “help lift the brand of Grand Bahama” and drive increased visitor numbers to the island.
He added that the Department of Environmental Planning and Protection’s (DEPP) goahead for the eco-sensitive, high-end resort, which will create more than 200 permanent jobs when it opens in 2026, will enable Weller and its partners to “finalise our building plans” and obtain the necessary construction permits. “While we expected a positive outcome around this permitting and administrative test, we are also greatly relieved that we met the rules and complied with The Bahamas’ requirements to take this project forward,” Mr Weller told this newspaper.
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PM denies Budget forecasts ‘fantasy’ By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net THE Prime Minister yesterday denied that the Government’s Budget forecasts are “fantasy” as he asserted that recent monthly fiscal deficits for June were elevated due to paying off outstanding bills. Philip Davis KC, leading off the House of Assembly’s Budget debate, admitted that achieving the 2023-2024 full-year deficit target of around $210m will require “a heightened degree of expenditure constraint” over the next few weeks to month’s end to
either balance the books or generate a modest surplus. Hitting back at the Opposition and other critics, who have argued that the full-year deficit forecast is highly unlikely to be met, he said: “I have taken a hands-on approach to this Budget and have ensured that it was a collaborative effort across the entirety of government. That is, across every ministry, agency and department in support of the Ministry of Finance’s meetings with ministers, permanent secretaries and heads of public corporations. This has led to better
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Lucayan sale ‘fantastic’ to counter $1,500 air tickets By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net HOTELIERS yesterday hailed the Prime Minister’s renewed optimism over the Grand Lucayan’s potential sale as “fantastic” given that this is key to lowering $1,500 one-way air fares to the US. Magnus Alnebeck, the Pelican Bay resort’s general manager, told Tribune Business that selling Grand Bahama’s one-time ‘anchor’ property “to a company that knows what it’s doing” and can rapidly re-open its full 1,200-strong room inventory remains the only solution to driving increased airlift supply. He spoke out after Prime Minister Philip Davis KC, leading-off the 20242025 Budget debate in the House of Assembly, disclosed that the latest talks over the Grand Lucayan had reached “an extremely promising stage” although he provided no details. “The latest round of negotiations for the sale of the Grand Lucayan hotel
PHILIP DAVIS KC are at an extremely promising stage. We hope that a positive announcement is imminent,” Mr Davis said. “The House will recall that the hotel was bought by the previous administration against all advice and for an amount higher than the valuation. It remains a drain on the public finances.” The Grand Lucayan was acquired from Cheung Kong (CK) Property Holdings, the real estate arm of Hutchison Whampoa, by the Minnis administration in September 2018 for $65m
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