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VI’s Financial Services under threat again

-not enough money for ‘money laundering evaluation requirements’—FIA Director
VI’s Financial Investigation Agency’s (FIA), Interim Acting Director Mr Alcedo D. Fahie. Photo: GIS
The Interim Acting Director stated that he had standing issue with the allocation for FIA—FIA’s original budget submitted was for $2.4 million. The Agency, under the Deputy Governor’s Office, has instead received an approved $1.6 million grant in the 2018 budget estimates. Photo: VINO/File
The Interim Acting Director stated that he had standing issue with the allocation for FIA—FIA’s original budget submitted was for $2.4 million. The Agency, under the Deputy Governor’s Office, has instead received an approved $1.6 million grant in the 2018 budget estimates. Photo: VINO/File
ROAD TOWN, Tortola, VI - The Virgin Islands (VI) has assembled a legal team to challenge a United Kingdom (UK) government’s decision—amendments to the Sanctions and Money Laundering Act—to counter one external threat, but it’s financial services sector faces another looming threat, if not addressed.

The matter was raised recently when VI’s Financial Investigation Agency’s (FIA), Interim Acting Director Mr Alcedo D. Fahie, examined the 2018 allocations for the entity with the House of Assembly’s Standing Finance Committee.

Mr Fahie told the Committee Members of an imminent mutual evaluation of the Territory in 2019, by the Caribbean Financial Action Taskforce (CFATF) to evaluate its regime under its Anti-Money Laundering/Combating Financing Terrorism (AML/CFT).

The VI’s FIA is expected to be the lead agency in for the Territory for the evaluation but according to Fahie, “It is his belief, that FIA will not be able to meet their entire obligation that were planned, if they are not able to receive the entire Budget that was requested.”

The Interim Acting Director stated that he had a standing issue with the allocation for FIA—FIA’s original budget submitted was for $2.4 million. The Agency, under the Deputy Governor’s Office, has instead received an approved $1.6 million grant in the 2018 budget estimates.

Critical Role  

The Agency is expected to, ahead of the evaluation; reach out to all non-financial business and business professional, all financial industry practitioners including all persons in the Territory.

The VI, as a CFATF member undergoes a series of rounds of mutual evaluation, with the Territory’s AML/CFT’s laws and the effectiveness under review

As such, the FIA plays a critical role in the evaluation process since it is the key agency that receives and evaluates suspicious reports in addition to serving as the regulator for the designated non-financial businesses and professions, as well as nonprofit organisations.

Other entities that would be involved in the mutual evaluation include the Attorney General’s Office, the Governor’s Office, the International Tax Authority, and Financial Services Commission as the Financial Services regulator and other law enforcement agencies such as the Courts, Police, Customs, and Immigration.

A failure on the part of the VI to successfully meet with the CFATF requirements could see the country being ‘blacklisted’ and could find itself facing additional economic pressures and obligations.    

5 Responses to “VI’s Financial Services under threat again”

  • Dim Sum (26/06/2018, 12:23) Like (13) Dislike (3) Reply
    Just goes to show the level of true commitment that these guys have towards accountability!! Cut the budget by $800k and fully we’ll know that a critical assessment is on the radar - BS! What does the Premier LS have to say about this? Oh snap she is traveling 1st class on BVi taxpayers dime to sip champagne and further enrich herself on our collective backs! How come the new NDP leader didn’t see this as an issue and made his usual noise? Priorities priorities priorities - NDP have zero, zilch, nada - apart from self-praises and personal enrichment!
  • 123 (26/06/2018, 12:58) Like (3) Dislike (5) Reply
    thought we had no money laundering yall
  • The TRUTH (26/06/2018, 19:37) Like (1) Dislike (2) Reply
    You guys live in denial and don't have the mental capacity to handle what is coming down on us. You are about to pay the price of the Kool Aid you have been drinking. This is just the tip of the iceberg.
  • Me (26/06/2018, 20:01) Like (0) Dislike (1) Reply
    the 'money laundering' label is just used to bully and invade peoples' privacy and target people deemed
    'undesirable' - it is a vague term to simply cause someone or something or some territory, problems. this was
    done to me after i moved to the BVI by a famous bank claiming they were looking for laundered money in my
    pissant checking account here. If this was caused by some overbearing Caribbean organization as well as the
    bank here itself and the filthy lieing BVI government itself, then maybe something very military will be done in
    retaliation. Bullying some foreigner who merely moved to this region and merely opened a checking account at
    a bank with branches throughout the Caribbean - is really asking for it. I'm sure the US President and others
    concerned with the well being of Americans abroad also share the concern. Cut the crap and let people live.
    Don't mess with this one.
  • BRAD BOYNES (27/06/2018, 10:57) Like (0) Dislike (0) Reply
    "Other entities that would be involved in the mutual evaluation include the Attorney General’s Office, the Governor’s Office, the International Tax Authority, and Financial Services Commission as the Financial Services regulator and other law enforcement agencies such as the Courts, Police, Customs, and IMMIGRATION."

    HMM. There's is only one immigration officer who was trained to partake in this coming up agender in 2019. Guess who.???? Shame.


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