The Bahamas Investor

...on Atlantis Paradise Island today, as the resort plays host to the Global Financial Summit 2012. The event, which runs from Wednesday to Saturday this week, is expected to attract hundreds of top executives, business leaders and investors. “We’ll gather and discuss proven free market solutions to the problems of inflation, economic crisis, unemployment, recession and depression,” says summit organizer and founder Mark Skousen. Steve Moore, a lead......

...orded total net income was $13.5 million. Cecilia Yad, Ultrapetrol’s Chief Financial Officer, said, “We generated strong financial results during the second quarter and we continued strengthening our overall financial position. We successfully redeemed $180.0 million of our outstanding 9% Senior Notes due 2014 utilizing a portion of the proceeds of our $200.0 million offering of 8 7/8% First Preferred Ship Mortgage Notes due 2021. In placing the n......

...ment, believes that there needs to be more crossover between the legal and financial sectors in this area. “Most people you talk to say we have enough lawyers, but there are not too many concentrated in the private client field,” she explains. “I do not think the field is closed, but to have more lawyers, you need more business, so what comes first–the chicken or the egg?” Thompson also says there is a difficulty in encouraging diversification in......

...ans that accessing the gold market has never been easier. Gold is a unique financial asset in that it has no counterparty risk. Its lack of correlation with other mainstream financial assets also means it can help diversify a portfolio and boost risk-adjusted returns regardless of the health of the financial sector or broader economy. Gold also has a long history as an inflation hedge, outperforming bonds and equities in high inflation years. Gold......

...o do with The Bahamas? Well, The Bahamas continues to grow and evolve as a financial services centre focused on the wealth management industry. Unlike other international financial centres that have focused on non-private wealth management services, The Bahamas has made this a priority and various members of the Bahamian financial services segment of the government have been very active in promoting this approach. We have seen developments in The......

...ave over the other jurisdictions is that it’s actually less expensive to administer a fund here and to provide professional services here, as far as legal fees, administration fees, accounting fees and other professional service-related fees.” Colleague Townend adds that administration for hedge funds is “growing all of the time.” A place to work and play More than financial products are drawing investors ashore. Seven hundred islands and cays, sa......

..., where she participated in a panel discussion debating the global view of financial services. The first speaker of the panel, Richard Hay, a partner at law firm Strikeman Elliot , pointed out that the 2012 Sharman Report found little evidence that IFCs are used for tax evasion, and that these centres actually boost the global economy by facilitating cross-border trade. Fellow panelist Prince Rahming, senior partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers , war......

...arket indices trade well within record territory, when adjusted for inflation, the story changes. For example, the inflation-adjusted Dow still trades below both its 1999 and 2007 peaks — albeit not by much (only 0.3% below its 2007 pre financial crisis peak and 2.7% below its 1999 all-time, inflation-adjusted record high). Another point of interest is how the inflation-adjusted Dow has not spent much time above the low 15,000 level (see red dashe......

...rkets since the financial crisis. For some further perspective on the post-financial crisis rally, today’s chart illustrates how much of the downturn that occurred as a result of the financial crisis has been retraced by each of the five major US stock market indexes. For example, the S&P 500 peaked at 1,565.15 back in October 9, 2007 and troughed at 676.53 back on March 9, 2009. The most recent close for the S&P 500 is 1,570.25 — it has retraced......

...oday at the British Colonial Hilton in Nassau. Opening the four-day event, Minister of State for Finance Michael Halkitis said: “As world leaders continue to deal with the global financial crisis, regulatory challenges are emerging. It is more important now than ever for regulators to be vigilant and promote the development of fair, safe and stable insurance markets.” The workshops, which are co-sponsored by the Caribbean Assocation of Insurance R......

...ce markets and the Family Islands unaffected by Hurricane Dorian. Read/download the full report and report summary here: Monthly Economic and Financial Developments December 2019 December MEFD Summary......

...st year. With business booming in the region, it has long been a target of financial services providers. Swiss banks have found themselves jostling for market share with their US counterparts. According to Valenzuela, a good name and a sterling reputation can deliver that vital edge. “We of course respect US banks. Rather than trying to fight them, we try to distinguish ourselves from them. We have certain features that are very attractive, but wh......

...ive certificates of good standing and dissolution. “We believe those three services will have significant impact on the private sector,” she said, noting that government is committed to its timetable of getting all these services online by the end of 2013. “I want to tell you that the government is very serious about e-government and it is happening. The team at the Ministry of Finance is determined to turn things around and to make life easier fo......

...s with Disabilities September 24, setting the framework for the introduction of national disability legislation. Minster of Social Services and Community Development Melanie Griffin signed the convention on behalf of the government of The Bahamas. Minister of Social Services and Community Development Melanie Griffin signs the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities on behalf of the government of The Bahamas September 2......

...laid out its plans to take the company forward–promising faster broadband services, a cutting-edge mobile network, reduced rates and improved customer service. BTC has invested $43 million in a new 4G mobile network service, which will allow customers to access the internet from their cell phones or laptops anywhere there is a cell signal. This new service will be available in New Providence and Grand Bahama by the end of this year with the rest......