Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

Out in the Open

Out in the Open

Cayman Finance has issued a statement in support of government’s intention to introduce a public register of beneficial ownership, when such registers become the norm under international standards, for example in the European Union.

The association, which represents Cayman’s financial services industry, said it “supports the decision by the Cayman Islands Government to introduce a public register of beneficial ownership in line with evolving global standards and practices within a timeframe that aligns with UK legislation and the EU 5th Anti-Money Laundering Directive”.

The decision will see the true owners of Cayman-based companies made public sometime after 2022.

Beneficial ownership has long been a contentious issue. Lawmakers, anti-corruption campaigners and tax advocacy groups believe that publicly available beneficial ownership information, particularly for shell companies offshore, is needed to fight money laundering and financial crime.

In 2018, UK parliamentarians effectively legislated for Cayman, when they inserted a clause into the UK Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act. The clause demanded an order-in-council to implement such registers in the British Overseas Territories, if they did not introduce them voluntarily.

The move was strongly criticised as “colonial”, because financial matters are devolved to the territories and their own parliaments. UK parliamentarians, in turn, claimed their fight against money laundering was a matter of national security, overriding any devolved matters.

The issue strained relations between the UK and its territories.

However, the pressure on the British territories increased after the UK Crown Dependencies announced in June their commitment to public registers in line with developments in the EU, while Gibraltar expressed its intent to introduce a public register before the end of the year.

It is understood that the Cayman Islands government negotiated with other territories for months to come to a joint position. However, other territories argued that their constitutional relationship prevented them from making a commitment to public ownership registers at this time. The British Virgin Islands, for instance, has mounted an ongoing legal challenge to the beneficial ownership provision in the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act.

Premier Alden McLaughlin, who had previously stated Cayman would only make ownership information public if that were to become a global standard, said in a statement on Tuesday that the rules have evolved.

“The introduction of the UK’s public beneficial ownership register, the EU 5th Anti-Money Laundering Directive and similar actions by other jurisdictions represents a shift in the global standard and the practices used to combat illicit activity,” he said.

Cayman Finance stated in the same vein, “Now that the UK and EU are establishing an emerging global standard for ownership registers to be public, the Cayman Islands financial services industry will work closely with the Cayman Islands Government to ensure we meet that standard also.”

The association said the success of the industry had always been dependent on compliance with the highest global standards for transparency and cross-border cooperation with tax and law enforcement. As a result, Cayman achieves the same OECD rating for transparency as countries like the UK, the US, Germany, Canada and Australia.

Cayman Finance continues to maintain that Cayman’s non-public beneficial ownership system of service providers collecting and verifying beneficial ownership information is superior to the UK register of public, but largely unverified, information.

“Our industry has also actively supported Cayman’s verified ownership regime for more than 15 years even though verification of ownership information is not yet a standard achieved by most other jurisdictions, who still rely on less accurate registers of self-reported information,” the organisation stated.

“Now that the UK and EU are establishing an emerging global standard for ownership registers to be public, the Cayman Islands financial services industry will work closely with the Cayman Islands Government to ensure we meet that standard also.” – Cayman Finance


Naomi Hirst, senior campaigner at anti-corruption watchdog Global Witness, said in a press statement: “This commitment from the Cayman Islands to reveal the real people behind companies on their shores shows how company transparency is now the global standard in financial integrity. The writing is on the wall for the rest of the British Overseas Territories who will today be feeling the pressure to follow suit and announce their own plans as a matter of urgency.”

She said, once public registers are brought in across all the British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies, it will be much harder for the criminal and corrupt to use UK tax havens to hide and move stolen wealth.

The reform of the UK public register over the next two years and new European public registers, which are due to be implemented in 2020 under the EU’s 5th Anti-Money Laundering Directive, are likely to improve the standards of information accuracy and management.

Without its commitment to public registers, Cayman would have come under growing pressure from the EU. Although immediate plans are put on hold, the introduction of public registers is expected to become a future requirement to avoid inclusion on the EU tax blacklist of jurisdictions that are deemed uncooperative in tax matters.

AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Vatican hosts first Catholic LGBTQ pilgrimage
Apple Unveils iPhone 17 Series, iPhone Air, Apple Watch 11 and More at 'Awe Dropping' Event
France joins Eurozone’s ‘periphery’ as turmoil deepens, say investors
France Faces New Political Crisis, again, as Prime Minister Bayrou Pushed Out
Nayib Bukele Points Out Belgian Hypocrisy as Brussels Considers Sending Army into the Streets
France, at an Impasse, Heads Toward Another Government Collapse
The Country That Got Too Rich? Public Spending Dominates Norway Election
EU Proposes Phasing Out Russian Oil and Gas by End of 2027 to End Energy Dependence
More Than 150,000 Followers for a Fictional Character: The New Influencers Are AI Creations
EU Prepares for War
Trump Threatens Retaliatory Tariffs After EU Imposes €2.95 Billion Fine on Google
Tesla Board Proposes Unprecedented One-Trillion-Dollar Performance Package for Elon Musk
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Trump Administration Advances Plans to Rebrand Pentagon as Department of War Instead of the Fake Term Department of Defense
Big Tech Executives Laud Trump at White House Dinner, Unveil Massive U.S. Investments
Tether Expands into Gold Sector with Profit-Driven Diversification
‘Looks Like a Wig’: Online Users Express Concern Over Kate Middleton
Florida’s Vaccine Revolution: DeSantis Declares War on Mandates
Trump’s New War – and the ‘Drug Tyrant’ Fearing Invasion: ‘1,200 Missiles Aimed at Us’
"The Situation Has Never Been This Bad": The Fall of PepsiCo
At the Parade in China: Laser Weapons, 'Eagle Strike,' and a Missile Capable of 'Striking Anywhere in the World'
The Fashion Designer Who Became an Italian Symbol: Giorgio Armani Has Died at 91
Putin Celebrates ‘Unprecedentedly High’ Ties with China as Gazprom Seals Power of Siberia-2 Deal
China Unveils New Weapons in Grand Military Parade as Xi Hosts Putin and Kim
Rapper Cardi B Cleared of Liability in Los Angeles Civil Assault Trial
Google Avoids Break-Up in U.S. Antitrust Case as Stocks Rise
Couple celebrates 80th wedding anniversary at assisted living facility in Lancaster
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
The White House on LinkedIn Has Changed Their Profile Picture to Donald Trump
"Insulted the Prophet Muhammad": Woman Burned Alive by Angry Mob in Niger State, Nigeria
Trump Responds to Death Rumors – Announces 'Missile City'
Druzhba Pipeline Incident Sparks Geopolitical Tensions
Cost of Opposition Leader Péter Magyar's Economic Plan Revealed
Germany in Turmoil: Ukrainian Teenage Girl Pushed to Death by Illegal Iraqi Migrant
United Krack down on human rights: Graham Linehan Arrested at Heathrow Over Three X Posts, Hospitalised, Released on Bail with Posting Ban
Asian and Middle Eastern Investors Avoid US Markets
Ray Dalio Warns of US Shift to Autocracy
Eurozone Inflation Rises to 2.1% in August
Russia and China Sign New Gas Pipeline Deal
Von der Leyen's Plane Hit by Suspected Russian GPS Interference in an Incident Believed to Be Caused by Russia or by Pro-Peace or by Anti-Corruption European Activists
China's Robotics Industry Fuels Export Surge
Suntory Chairman Resigns After Police Probe
Gold Price Hits New All-Time Record
UK Fintechs Explore Buying US Banks
Greece Suspends 5% of Schools as Birth Rate Drops
Apollo to Launch $5 Billion Sports Investment Vehicle
Bolsonaro Trial Nears Close Amid US-Brazil Tension
European Banks Push for Lower Cross-Border Barriers
Poland's Offshore Wind Sector Attracts Investors
×