04282023 BUSINESS

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Baha Mar teases Melia plan as volumes up 20%

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

BAHA Mar’s president yesterday hailed an “extraordinary first quarter” and “record March”, with 2023 business volumes up 20 percent year-over-year, as he revealed plans to redevelop the still-closed Melia resort will be unveiled imminently.

Graeme Davis did not provide any details on how Baha Mar’s owner, Chow Tai Fook Enterprises (Bahamas), plans to revamp the 694-room property that was closed more than two years ago as he touted the average 90 percent occupancy achieved across its three major resort brands during March.

“[There] are ongoing discussions with the Government on our Melia project next door,” he told a Bahamas Hotel and Tourism Association (BHTA) directors meeting. “We look forward to hopefully announcing that very soon so stay tuned for our next report.”

Robert Sands, Baha Mar’s seniorvice president of administration and external relations, subsequently told Tribune Business that an announcement may come even sooner. Declining

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to provide specifics on CTFE’s plans, he said: “Hopefully he’ll [Mr Davis] be able to make an announcement on that in the next week or two. It is imminent.”

The Government has been pushing owners of still-closed New Providence resort properties, especially the Melia and British Colonial, to re-open as rapidly as possible and relieve the island’s present room inventory shortage which has resulted from post-COVID demand exceeding present capacity.

The room inventory shortage has helped drive up rates and yields, but Dr

Taxi drivers face ‘code of conduct’

• Penalties for violators to boost visitor experience

• Compliance linked to industry’s fare rise demands

• Fare announcement proposal set for next week

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

TRAFFIC authorities are planning a shakeup of the taxi industry’s regulatory regime that will require drivers to sign-up to, and abide by, a “code of conduct” with an announcement on fare changes due as early as next week.

Kenneth Romer, the Ministry of Tourism, Investments and Aviation’s deputy director-general recently revealed it has been impossible to find beds for passengers on flights that have either been diverted to, or delayed in, Nassau. CTFE, also Baha Mar’s owner, is also behind the initial renovation schedule it set out for the Melia when it announced the property’s closure in mid-February 2021. It said then that the resort will close for two years to undergo a

Nassau/PI hotels see 35% ‘business on books’ jump

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

NASSAU/PARADISE

Island hotels are eyeing a 35 percent year-over-year increase in “business on the books” for 2023, it was disclosed yesterday, with “loaded” airline seats through June also up on 2022.

Joy Jibrilu, the Nassau Paradise Island Promotion Board’s (NPIPB) chief executive, told the Bahamas Hotel and Tourism Association’s (BHTA) directors meeting that the industry’s performance for the 2023 first quarter “bodes well for a great year ahead”.

“For business on the books for all of 2023, as it stands now we’re up 35 percent compared to last last year,” she

disclosed. “If you’re looking at the booking pace for Nassau/ Paradise Island, it’s 30-60 days out...... For the period April to August, we’re up 22 percent. We expect those booking numbers to rise as we get closer to travel.”

Turning to airlift, Mrs Jibrilu said Nassau was now among a select group of Caribbean

MSC joins Freeport deal targeting October close

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

THE GRAND Bahama Port Authority’s (GBPA) president yesterday said October is being targeted for completion of a $70m Freeport Harbour deal in which Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) has teamed with Royal Caribbean.

Ian Rolle, addressing the Bahamas Hotel and Tourism Association (BHTA) in his capacity as Grand Bahama Island Tourism Board chair, confirmed that the two cruise giants have partnered with ITM Group as long-running negotiations over the project with Freeport Harbour

Company seemingly near a conclusion.

“They are looking to redevelop the existing harbour,” he confirmed. “At first, ITM and Royal Caribbean were the only ones involved in this process.

SEE PAGE B5

Authorities target taxi inspection crackdown

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

THE “COMPLETELY antiquated” Road Traffic Act is set for a major overhaul, it was revealed yesterday, as the authorities also prepare to crack down on taxis “circumventing and bypassing” the vehicle inspection process.

Lanecia Darville, the Road Traffic Authority’s chair, told a Bahamas Hotel and Tourism Association (BHTA) meeting that there were vehicles on the road that “probably shouldn’t be licensed as taxis” as she acknowledged

that the sector’s regulatory framework is “absolutely critical to enhancing the transportation experience” for visitors as well as Bahamians.

However, industry stakeholders also lamented the seeming lack of education among drivers seeking employment with tour operators and others.

William Saunders, of Majestic Tours, questioned whether the Bahama Host certification process was properly preparing drivers as one he hired did not know where Gregory’s Arch was.

Lanecia Darville, the Road Traffic Authority’s chairman, told a Bahamas Hotel and Tourism Association (BHTA) board of directors meeting that the regulator agreed with the sector’s call for professional standards to be imposed on taxi franchise holders and drivers - with unspecified penalties for violations - as part of the drive to improve the transportation experience for visitors.

Noting that there have been “persistent issues” involving the taxi sector’s interaction with tourists, she said that if the Government were to agree the fare increase that drivers have been demanding then it would want the sector to work with it to improve standards and conduct “in return”.

With visitors frequently complaining about high taxi fares, and alleging they are being “overcharged” and unable to obtain fee schedules, Robert Sands, the BHTA’s president, said the sector’s collaboration with the Government in bid to improve the ground transportation will be “pivotal for the future success of the [tourism] industry”.

With the Association’s transportation experience committee now meeting regularly with the Ministry of Transport and Housing to tackle the issue, he added: “It’s going to make a significant difference to the experience of visitors in this destination. It’s no use to continue to bring more of those people here and send more of them away dissatisfied.”

Ms Darville, acknowledging that it is critical for The Bahamas to “elevate the transportation experience”, said the Road Traffic Authority is already reviewing a draft “code of conduct” for taxi drivers that has been prepared by the BHTA with the “ultimate intent” for it to roll-out industry-wide. She added that drivers and franchise holders could be

GRAEME DAVIS JOY JIBRILU

IAN ROLLE

WAYS TO GROW WITHOUT LOSING PEACE OF MIND

Every business, small or large, has growth on their agenda. The type of growth varies from revenue generation, store location, physical space and number of employees to any other metric that the specific company views as critical. There are many small businesses that choose to avoid aggressive growth, and instead prefer to remain at micro or small size. Fortunately, there are various ways to take your small business to new heights without sacrificing your company’s profitability or losing peace of mind.

FERGUSON IAN

As micro and small businesses are the lifeblood of most countries’ economies, this week we focus our attention on ways to help such firms thrive and grow.

Here are nine simple tips to help you navigate through this:

1. Focus on a single product or service, and then market it, sell it, promote it. Do everything you can to increase sales of that one product or service.

2. Expand your product line to offer complementary products or services.

3. Find ways to increase sales to your existing customers.

4. Hire someone to help you out, whether they are an employee, a freelancer, an intern, an independent contractor or even your children or trusted relatives.

5. Create a website to advertise your company or sell products online. Even a single page website helps with this.

6. Join forces with another business to promote your company.

7. Engage new generations through social media platforms. Choose two or three, and engage well on each of them.

8. Find new and different ways to market your business through e-mail newsletters, or by doing guest-speaking gigs or by teaching a class.

9. Expand to another location. Know when it is time to open the store front and find the most cost-effective and brandeffective way to do it.

10. Think about turning your business into a franchise or business opportunity.

• NB: Ian R Ferguson is a talent management and organisational development consultant, having completed graduate studies with regional and international universities. He has served organisations, both locally and globally, providing relevant solutions to their business growth and development issues. He may be contacted at tcconsultants@ coralwave.com.

BAHAMAS PUSHES UN AGENCY OVER DEVELOPING STATE SUPPORT

THE Bahamas is pushing to gain more support for developing countries such as itself from the United Nations (UN) Food and Agriculture Organisation.

The nation’s FAO ambassador, Winston Pinnock, made the intervention while attending the 172nd session of the FAO Council in Rome, Italy. The Ministry of Agriculture, Marine Resources and Family Island Affairs, in a statement, said he is also using the event to meet with other countries and organisations that can help The Bahamas achieve its food security.

“Livelihoods dependent on the agriculture and fisheries sectors are impacted daily by climate change and economic challenges.

As we continue to face rising food prices, there is the grave need for FAO’s support for innovative solutions to be disseminated throughout the region for adaptation and adoption,” Mr Pinnock said.

“We wish to reiterate that it should be recognised that the Latin American and Caribbean region has the greatest number of Small Island Developing States

- 16 out of 33, globally. These SIDS are most vulnerable to impacts of climate change, biodiversity loss and increasing socioeconomic risks, largely due to slow recovery from natural disasters.

“Notwithstanding the good work that FAO has done in the Caribbean region, we continue to be at a significant disadvantage compared to other regions when it comes to tangible and meaning support from the FAO, which can assists SIDS in the Caribbean region in being able to recover from natural disasters, which has unfortunately become common place in our region, primarily due to more and more intense hurricanes which scientific evidence shows is directly related to climate change.”

The Bahamas was unanimously elected to serve on the FAO council in 2019 to represent CARICOM countries, and was recently re-elected to serve for another three-year term. During this week’s FAO meeting, recommendations for the upcoming 43rd Session of the conference in June 2023 will be

discussed along with the work programme for the upcoming year and other matters involving global food security.

The FAO has historically assisted The Bahamas on a wide range of issues, with many agencies benefiting through its Country Programme Framework (CPF), including the Departments of Marine Resources and Agriculture, The Bahamas Agriculture and Marine Science Institute (BAMSI), Ministries of Education and Health and the Department of Forestry.

Current FAO projects in The Bahamas include a School Feeding Project, a forestry development plan and a digital village, which was launched in February to provide a mechanism that promotes digital agriculture solutions on the Family Islands.

The Ministry said The Bahamas is now hoping the FAO will help it build capacity to develop a poultry industry, a National Food Security Plan and applications that will be used in the agriculture sector providing pertinent information to farmers.

Climate change, rising shipping and freight costs, inflation and inequality are continuing to drive food insecurity. The Russian and Ukraine war is also negatively impacting global food security as it relates to the cost and access to fertilizers and food, as both nations are big producers of these items.

While in Rome, the Bahamian delegation also met with Jan Beagle, directorgeneral of the International Development Law Organisation, an international inter-governmental organisation based in Rome that is dedicated to the rule of law and justice for all.

The IDLO is currently working in The Bahamas with the Attorney General’s Office, Police Prosecution’s Office and civil society. They are now phasing into working with food security and the FAO.

BAHAMAS FAO ambassador, Winston Pinnock, meets with IDLO director-general, Jan Beagle.

SBDC: POULTRY PRODUCER RECEIVED ‘ALL FUNDS DUE’

THE Small Business Development Centre (SBDC) says “all funds due” to an Abaco-based poultry producer for a solar energy project have been paid over while denying that any sums remain outstanding. The agency, known as Access Accelerator, in a statement responding to a Tribune Business article said Lance Pinder, Abaco Big Bird’s principal, was advised that he would only receive $25,493 in funding from the Climate Smart Grant initiative because he had previously obtained $14,507 from the Ministry of Agriculture, Marine Resources and Family Island Affairs to cover fuel surcharges.

Combined, those two sums would have taken

Mr Pinder to the $40,000 maximum limit for this grant. However, the Abaco Big Bird chief said he only received the ministry’s $14,507 contribution yesterday - one day after the original Tribune Business article ran.

“They actually disbursed the money today. But it didn’t come directly from the SBDC,” Mr Pinder added. He had previously revealed he was unable to proceed with the solar installation without receiving the full funding. The SBDC, though, in its statement said that “all funds due to Lance Pinder of Abaco Big Bird were remitted as promised based on the terms and conditions of

his approval for the Climate Smart Grant in November of 2022”.

“Mr Pinder was approved for funding under the Climate Smart Grant in the amount of $25,493.20, and was notified of his approval via our standard notification process; an electronic distribution of the grant approval letter. The applicant also signed and dated the approval letter on November 16, 2022, confirming agreement with the terms of the grant.

“The Climate Smart Grant, in conjunction with the Ministry of Agriculture, Marine Resources and Family Island Affairs, had a maximum funding approval of up to $40,000,” the

SBDC added. “It is notable to mention that Mr Pinder was also advised that, as he previously received $14,507 in funding from the Ministry for fuel surcharges, in addition to the grant funding from the SBDC of $25,493, the total funding he received was $40,000, which met the maximum disbursement amount for the grant.”

Mr Pinder’s comments indicate that it was the ministry, and not the SBDC, that may have been late in paying him what was due. Samantha Rolle, the SBDC’s executive director, said she “wishes to reassure the public that all current and future grant awardees can expect to receive their disbursements as outlined in the contents of their disbursement approval letter”. She added that the Climate Smart Grant has provided 11 agricultural businesses with a total $373,450.23.

Mr Pinder had earlier this week told Tribune Business:

“I’m just waiting. I’m not up and running at this point. The power bills are going up all the time along with the fuel surcharges and things like that, and some of that funding was to help me offset that. That grant funding was supposed to get me back to where it was before these increases started, so I was really hoping to have the project completed already.”

The funding goes directly to the contractor installing the solar panels, not to Abaco Big Bird. Brenton Nixon, owner/operator of Smart Power Solutions, the contractor installing the solar panels, said: “We haven’t started the project as yet, but we have nearly all of the equipment and we are just waiting for the inverter.”

The inverter’s arrival was delayed because the manufacturer was filling back orders from the COVID-19 lockdowns and Smart Power Solutions was

down the list of customers. “We need a specific type of inverter to go with the 480 volt system that we have, but everything like the ground mounts and the wiring connections, I have. Everything else I have, except the inverter,” Mr Nixon said.

“The inverter should be in by mid-May, but I am not sure when the Ministry of Agriculture is going to send me the balance of the funds. I just have no idea because when I spoke to Lance (Pinder), he said he doesn’t even know when they will send the rest of the money.

“The first payment from the SBDC that came in was about $26,000. We really need the balance to start the work. We have the ground mounts now. They were the most costly. I just really wanted to get them out of the way so I know that I have them.”

Food retailers ‘not too good’ over price control flexibility

By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net

FOOD retailers “don’t feel too good” that the Government could reintroduce an expanded price control regime in the future as they yesterday questioned the extent of the initiative’s success.

Philip Beneby, president of the Retail Grocers Association (RGA), which represents more than 130 food store operators, told Tribune Business he is unsure how the Government could measure or benchmark the revised regime’s impact after Michael Halkitis, minister for economic affairs, earlier this week hailed the six-month initiative - which expired on April 24 - as a “success” in providing some relief

to consumers from inflation and the high cost of living.

“I don’t know how exactly they would measure success, but there were a bit of savings for the customers,” Mr Beneby said. “This is during a time of high inflation, which we had no control over. So in that regard you can view it as a success.”

Food merchants are “coping” with the return to the pre-November 2022 price control regime despite Mr Halkitis saying the Government is leaving open the option to expand it again in the future. Mr Beneby warned: “That’s their prerogative and we don’t feel too good about that. But like the Government had said, they would continue to monitor and see if it needs to happen if I understand them correctly.”

Price Control officials previously said that while larger food retailers

were compliant with the expanded price control list, many smaller ‘Mom and Pop’ operations found the changes difficult to implement and were cited on many occasions for breaches. Mr Halkitis, though, said the expanded price control regime had bought the Government time to increase the number of price control inspectors who will be in the field ensuring compliance by merchants.

Mr Beneby added: “They are not saying that for sure they would reinstitute the expanded price control list, but they will continue to monitor it and see if it needs to happen again, considering inflation, which we have no control over. Right now our members are not saying anything about the expiration of the expanded price control list. We will continue to monitor this and

keep the public appraised on what takes place.”

The Association president said the success of the expanded price control regime depends on which side of the debate persons sit. He added that it is “difficult to contradict” what Mr Halkitis said given that he sits in a ministerial chair.

Food merchants and their wholesale suppliers last year warned that the 38 selected categories for expanded price controls included more than 5,000 product line items, and would lead to between 40-60 percent of a retailer’s inventory becoming price controlled with mark-ups below their cost of sales.

This would result in a large portion, or the majority, of their inventory being sold at a loss. Besides threatening hundreds of industry jobs, and the very survival of many operators,

MINISTER URGES UN TAKE OVER OF GLOBAL TAX WOES

By FAY SIMMONS jsimmons@ tribunemedia.net

A CABINET minister yesterday called for the creation of an independent multilateral body to review all tax-related blacklistings of The Bahamas and other small jurisdictions over what he described as “technical deficiencies”.

Michael Halkitis, minister of economic affairs, urged that the United Nations (UN) take over responsibility for all international tax matters in his address to the Bahamas Association of Compliance Officers (BACO) as he lashed out at the European Union’s (EU) decision to brand this nation as noncooperative on tax matters.

Noting that not a single European state was given such status, despite known weaknesses in their regulatory frameworks, he warned that the tactics adopted by the likes of the European Union (EU) and Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) threaten “immediate, destructive economic consequences” for nations such as The Bahamas whose economies are based on cross-border international business.

“We have recently been judged as non-cooperative for what we think are technical implementation reasons,” Mr Halkitis said. “Not because we don’t have the necessary mandated laws, and not because we don’t have a commitment at the highest political level to be compliant, and not because we don’t have a history of co-operationbut because we were found to be deficient in certain technical implementation areas.

“We no longer have time when listed to work through the process. We no longer have the luxury of time. Penalties to crossborder business will have immediate, destructive economic consequences.” The Bahamas is currently on an

EU tax blacklist because of deficiencies identified with its economic substance reporting, which it hopes to address in time for an October 2023 review and thereby escape this designation.

And the OECD also found The Bahamas noncompliant on one aspect

of its Common Reporting Standard (CRS) for automatic tax information exchange. “That single deficiency failed the entire review, despite a clear recognition that there were no issues with our legislative framework or methodology and actual exchange of

information. And so that is where we are at; that is the framework of the way that game has evolved,” Mr Halkitis said.

“Unfortunately, the evidence suggests it will continue to evolve and

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the Retail Grocers Association and its members also warned that the original proposal could result in food shortages as retailers/wholesalers decline to stock loss-making items while also increasing prices on non-controlled items, thereby further fuelling the cost of living crisis.

Price controls have always been a controversial instrument among the private sector, especially those companies and businesses impacted by them. They were imposed by the Government decades ago to prevent what it viewed as an unscrupulous merchant class from exploiting lower income Bahamians by unreasonably hiking the price of food staples and other essential products, thus placing them out of reach while undermining living standards.

However, opponents argue they are an

anachronism that have no place in a modern 21st century economy. The private sector views price controls as an inefficient, distortionary mechanism that creates more unintended consequences than the supposed problems they solve. They can result in product shortages, while retailers and wholesalers have to increase prices and margins on non-price controlled items to compensate for selling these goods as effective “loss leaders”.

In practice, Tribune Business understands that while the Government gazzetted the expanded price control regime last year, it has not been enforcing it and the food retail and wholesale industry have continued to operate under the margins and mark-ups existed prior to its October 2022 unveiling.

• But Abaco Big Bird chief says balance came from Ministry yesterday

MICHAEL HALKITIS

Minister: ‘Goalposts keep moving’ with EU, OECD

of work had been put in to achieve compliance “only to have the goalposts move again”.

THE Bahamas is now being blacklisted for implementation deficiencies rather than weaknesses in its financial laws, a Cabinet minister said yesterday.

Minister of Economic Affairs Michael Halkitis said that thousands of hours

He said the country had recently been rated on the final two recommendations for compliance and had been largely compliant, adding: “That’s what it took to get through the seven years and speed of new restrictive legislation, thousands of hours of work

as a technical team at the OAG and into finance and elsewhere. And, again, an unfunded mandate, a lot of resources expended, only to have the goalposts move again.”

He added: “And while working to achieve those ratings we faced the EU who recently found The Bahamas non-compliant due to technical deficiencies

in the commercial economic substance requirements.”

He said: “We call them unfunded mandates in public policy, today you get these mandates, you have to do these things but nobody’s giving you any money. So you have to use your resources to amend the law [and] hire people to do all these things.”

Mr Halkitis announced that BDO was contracted to implement a new reporting portal to deal with technical deficiencies identified by the OECD and EU.

He said: “The CESRA [Commercial Entities Substance Requirements Act] was entered into force in The Bahamas with effect from January 1, 2019, and requires commercial entities engaged in certain technical activities to have economic substance in The Bahamas and European code of conduct during its annual monitoring of the effective implementation.

“We were notified shortly after when this administration came in that we were non-compliant in certain areas. We work diligently to satisfy the concerns, however, not all of the deficiencies could be addressed before our review and they added us to the list of noncooperative jurisdictions.

“The deficiency primarily lies in the reporting portal and the methodology that was put in place. The substance reporting was put through the Department of Inland Revenue framework and it proved to be ineffective and presented many, many problems with the actual administration of the reporting and this was a challenge, given the shutdowns related to pandemic

and the lack of human capital working at the time.”

He added: “To remedy the situation, we thought it appropriate to start from scratch and have an entirely new reporting portal and framework we put in place.”

He said the government solicited proposals for a separate substance reporting portal and platform.

He said: “We have decided on BDO to develop a new portal for economic substance reporting, the contract is signed and they are working. This is the same company who implemented and manages the BOSS system. And so we believe that this is the proper way to do it. And we will be in compliance with what is expected of us for the effective implementation of the systems reporting regime. So we have acquired a portal, they are working and they will continue to roll out elements of the forum in the coming weeks. We also look to put in place a framework to allow us to verify whether through inspection or audit or some other acceptable method, the accuracy of the data, the use of the substance reporting. This is also an important element. And we look to be in a position to be rerated by the EU as compliant later this year.”

Mr Halkitis suggested the legislative changes coupled with the new portal should ensure the deficiencies are taken care of.

He said “There are no complaints from the people you’re exchanging information with about the adequacy of the information. But we want you to be

MINISTER URGES UN TAKE OVER OF GLOBAL TAX WOES

FROM PAGE B3

shift, penalising for what they view as technical deficiencies. And so we will do what we need to do, and we will be rated as compliant because we have to, and the Government has to do it for the success of the [financial services] industry. But it is a process that we are pretty sure we will have to go through again.

“I believe that part of the solution to this issue is that we must be unified diplomatically and have a single message to the world. Even though there are 15 members of us in CARICOM, there is a movement afoot to have someone else other than the OECD determine who is employing unfair tax practices. And so I believe we must embrace independent multilateral institutions such as the United Nations, and encourage them to take up this fight against this economic and financial discrimination.”

Speaking to the reputational damage inflicted by

so-called ‘name and shame’ blacklisting tactics, as well as the increased time and cost associated with international financial transactions, and the potential loss of correspondent banking relationships, Mr Halkitis said: “We are all too aware that these decisions have significant, and immediate, reputational and economic consequences in relation to the overall health and prospects of our economy, international trade, the ability to attract investment and basic aspects of crossborder payments.

“Multiple financial institutions in Thw Bahamas and other Caribbean jurisdictions have lost significant correspondent banking relationships as the result of being blacklisted. And this trend is aggravated by other factors affecting the banking industry, including growing pressure on banking institutions to increase their capital, streamline their business models

NOTICE

NOTICE is hereby given that SONNY MERLIEN, of Nassau Village, New Providence, The Bahamas applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for Registration Naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 21st day of April 2023 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.

NOTICE

NOTICE is hereby given that PATRICK GARY GUILLAUME, of Jones Town, Eight Mile Rock, Freeport, Grand Bahama applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for Registration Naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 28th day of April 2023 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.

able to go back and audit and verify that information that is being provided is accurate. And so, we have amended some legislation already and then there’s more legislation to be to be amended to deal specifically with the holding company, some things that the OECD and the EU found offensive.”

He added: “The focus of the blacklisting and discriminatory blacklisting is shifting from judgment based on if you have the applicable laws in place to meet their standards of effective implementation. And now they’re shifting to how we implement and operate. And so The Bahamas has been determined recently to be non-cooperative by the EU not because we have failed to pass the necessary laws, not because we have failed to give a commitment and stay engaged, but because what they see as deficiencies in implementation.”

The minister went on to assure compliance professionals that the government will ensure legislation and technical advancements will be implemented to ensure the country’s financial sector remains strong.

He said: “But until we can change the existing global financial architecture, we must continue to work towards compliance. And while continuing to innovate and being agile and constantly developing new products, and improved service delivery, I believe that in this we will maintain our position as the destination of choice for financial services. And so in short to get off, we will amend the legislation.”

and re-evaluate their risk profile.”

With $3trn in illicit financial flows estimated to be laundered annually through EU and OECD member states, Mr Halkitis said: “For those countries who have been subjected to blacklisting and similar designations, the only way to counter the adverse impacts discussed is to work expeditiously to get off that list every time before the goal posts move again.

“Coupled with the moving goalposts and the absence of a level playing field, the saga of blacklisting promises to persist and get worse with increasing adverse economic consequences, and the difficulty we have is there’s not a level playing field with respect to these matters of blacklisting. We have no choice but to conclude otherwise.”

Citing The Bahamas perfect ‘40 out of 40’ compliance with the Financial Action Task Force’s (FATF) anti-financial crime recommendations, Mr Halkitis said: “There is no G-7 country that has a 40 out of 40 compliant rating. There’s one EU country that is 40 out of 40; that is Malta, and of the 65 jurisdictions ‘grey listed’ or blacklisted by the FATF from 2010 to 2020, none are in the Group of Seven industrialised nations.

“Only two, Argentina and Turkey, are in the G-20, and the vast majority of those blacklisted countries hail from the global south. Twenty-eight rank in the bottom half of economies as measured by GDP. After the Paradise Papers, the EU’s Code of Conduct group blacklisted 17 countries. Not one European country was listed; they all got a free pass. In February 2019, the EU published an updated version of the anti-money laundering and counter-terror financing list. Again, not a single European country is listed.

“And in 2022, the EU identified jurisdictions with strategic deficiencies in their anti-money laundering and counter-terror financing regimes that pose significant threats to the financial system. And again, not a single EU country, but yet we developing countries all fight tooth and nail, with limited resources, limited technical ability and support. And we fight tooth and nail to comply with a standard, quite frankly, that might change in the next six months or less.”

MSC joins Freeport deal targeting October close

MSC has now come along and joined them in this partnership and we intend for this deal to be closed by October this year.”

MSC, which has already developed its own private island destination in The Bahamas near Bimini, thus appears to be seeking another port of call where it has some level of financial interest. Royal Caribbean and ITM have now been negotiating the deal’s terms with the Freeport Harbour Company, which is 50/50 owned by Hutchison Whampoa and the GBPA’s Port Group Ltd affiliate, for several years. Hutchison has Board and management control.

Tribune Business previously revealed that MSC, which is thought to be considered by the Davis administration as a potential candidate to acquire the GBPA and its assets, and buy out the Hayward and St George families, had teamed with Royal Caribbean and ITM on the Freeport Harbour deal.

Michael Bayley, Royal Caribbean’s president and chief executive, previously told this newspaper that Royal Caribbean was “increasingly optimistic”

that its joint venture with ITM Group will finally come to fruition as negotiations - which have already taken several years - continue with Freeport Harbour Company.

“That’s still going through its process,” he told Tribune Business then. “I would say we are increasingly optimistic about the timing of that. In the coming months hopefully we will be in a position to make some positive announcement on Freeport. Our intent is to bring more capacity into Freeport. The first step, which will be in conjunction with others, is investing in improving the port.”

The cruise chief said that investment would involve other parties, especially fellow lines that will use Freeport Harbour’s revived cruise port. Mr Bayley also confirmed that Royal Caribbean/ITM’s plans still call for an expansion in the number of cruise ship berths, and development of a water-based adventure theme park for passengers in close proximity to the harbour.

“That again will be a signal more tourists are coming to Freeport, and that will be an opportunity for investors and

NASSAU/PI HOTELS SEE 35% ‘BUSINESS ON BOOKS’ JUMP

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destinations that can boast of direct flights from all three New York area airports. “We now have direct service every day from La Guardia on Jet Blue,” she said. “That flight was launched on March 30. With the launch of this flight, Nassau is one of the Caribbean destinations that can boast of having airlift from all three airports that service the New York area.. This is really exciting.”

The three airports in question are La Guardia, JFK and Newark. “In terms of airlift, our overall capacity for the first quarter of this year, airlift was up 15 percent as compared to 2022,” Mrs Jibrilu said. “If you look at the amount of loaded seats through to June of this year, we’re up 14 percent compared to last year so the right direction all around.”

As for the Promotion Board’s revamped website, which has been made more user friendly for potential tourists using their mobile phones, she added: “We’re having record visitors to our site. For the first quarter of this year, the first three months of this year, we had three million visitors, which is an average of one million per month.

This represented a 99 percent increase on the 2022 first quarter, and Mrs Jibrilu said visitor numbers had reached 3.5m by mid-April 2023, marking a 92 percent jump for the year-to-date.

Acknowledging that “conversion” of these visitors into persons who visit the websites of member resorts is the critical indicator, she added: “For the first quarter we were up 84 percent with 650,000 conversions. For the year-to-date we’re up 79 percent compared to last year.”

So-called website conversions stood at 737,000 at mid-April. Mrs Jibrilu also indicated that there were increased airlift prospects following the Promotion Board’s attendance at the recent Routes Americas conference, which is the region’s major airline summit. “We had a wonderful showing. We had about 20 meetings with 17 airlines, and also with airports as well, and we are hopeful that good news can come,” she said.

Meanwhile, Marques Williams, the Association of Bahamas Marinas (ABM) president, told the meeting that the industry is some 19 percent ahead of 2019 figures for private vessel arrivals for the year-to-date.

Bookings for the full year are also currently 2 percent up on pre-COVID figures from that same year. “I just want to convey the sentiments of our members that we have positive filings and bookings for the rest of the year,” he added.

Kerry Fountain, the Bahamas Out Island Promotion Board’s (BOIPB) executive director, previously told Tribune Business that

entrepreneurs to start creating what we’re seeing in Nassau - new experiences that enhance the value to tourists the cruise industry is bringing to Freeport,” he added.

Mr Rolle, too, told last month’s Grand Bahama Business Outlook conference that Royal Caribbean’s $70m cruise port expansion, and redevelopment of Freeport Harbour in partnership with ITM Group and another party (MSC) who he did not identify then, remains on the table. He added that both Carnival and Royal Caribbean’s Grand Bahama investments are projected to each bring one million cruise visitors per annum to the island once fully operational.

Elsewhere, Mr Rolle yesterday said Grand Bahama was seeing a “gradual improvement” in visitor numbers “especially in hotel occupancies”. Yet it was performing “extremely well” on cruise arrivals with numbers up 199 percent year-over-year for February, and ahead of 2022 comparatives by 283 percent for the first two months.

Available hotel rooms in the destination stood at 1,509, but Mr Rolle

conceded: “Our occupancy is still not where we want it to be at 46 percent (for the January to March 2023 period), but at least we’ve improved it by 67 percent” compared to 2022.

Again touting an alleged $1bn investment pipeline, he added: “We have the Port Lucaya Resort and Marina that is currently under contract. That’s going to be a mixed-use resort. The investment is

anticipated to be $50m$80m there.. “One of the projects going on right now is the Grand Port. Carnival has completed their dredging for their cruise port. The next step is to put out to tender the construction of the pier to facilitate Carnival’s largest cruise vessels and I anticipate that construction of this pier work will start by September/ October.”

Mr Rolle also pointed to Weller Development and Pegasus Capital’s partnership with Rupert Hayward for the $200m Six Senses resort, as well as residential real estate projects by the Steininger Group and O2, plus the acquisition of a marina property by Xquisite Yachts, a manufacturer of high-end catamarans that is also expanding into powered yachts.

member properties were either exceeding or matching both their 2023 targets and 2019’s pre-pandemic performance on five of the ten islands where it is represented.

Based on figures for January and February 2023, he revealed that hotels on Abaco, Andros, Harbour Island, Acklins and San Salvador are ahead of predictions that they will achieve 100 percent of annual room nights sold, and 110 percent of room revenues, generated immediately before COVID hit.

Should those goals be realised, it would return the industry to a position matching - or exceeding - 2019 levels. Voicing optimism that this outcome will be realised, Mr Fountain said his confidence was based on increased airlift seat capacity

for 2023, the removal of COVID-related travel restrictions that were still present in early 2022, and the return of group business via the meetings, incentives, conferences and events (MICE) segment.

While initially disappointed that two major Family Island markets, Eleuthera and Exuma, appeared to have underperformed during the winter tourism season’s start, he added that “lifting the hood” revealed this was due to room inventory at one major property on either island being taken offline.

The Promotion Board chief, though, warned that “everybody has to work in sync” if 2023’s ambitions are to be realised, and said hotels must find ways to distinguish themselves from - and offer a competitive advantage over - the rapidly expanding vacation rental market that is increasingly making inroads into their customer base.

NOTICE

NOTICE is hereby given that NAMRATHA GURUVAIAH SRIDHARA, of Village Road Apartment 3 No. #21, Brooklyn Road, New Providence, The Bahamas applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for Registration Naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 28th day of April 2023 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.

NOTICE

NOTICE is hereby given that ERIC JULIEN, of East Street North, Nassau, The Bahamas applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for Registration Naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 28th day of April 2023 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.

NOTICE

NOTICE is hereby given that ERIC RUDOLPH BAIN III, of #8 Hunts Close, Firetail Road, Nassau, The Bahamas applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for Registration Naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 28th day of April 2023 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.

Taxi drivers face ‘code of conduct’

required to sign up to the code, and agree to abide by it, when they come in bi-annually to renew their licences.

“We know there have been persistent issues with the the transportation experience, particularly from the visitor perspective, for quite some time,” Ms Darville said. “We’re mindful that transportation is essential to our economy, and tourism is the big driver of our economy.

“At the Road Traffic Department and Road Traffic Authority, for too long the focus has really been more so on regulating the vehicles as opposed to regulating the drivers as well as the experience itself. The question is how we can do that.” Ms Darville said the Authority and transport officials “heard a lot of concerns and challenges” when they met with the BHTA committee in March, but also proposed solutions as well.

“One of the things you had all suggested, and we completely agree, was the introduction of a ‘code of conduct’ for taxi franchise holders and drivers,” she added. “We would since

have received that draft from you, and are in the process of reviewing that because what we intend to do is ultimately adopt it and it will be promulgated through the Road Traffic Authority.

“That, we expect, to outline core values and behaviours of franchise holders and drivers. Currently, in most countries, there are standards for professional conduct but I think locally that has been a matter of culture, and there are a lot of practices that are completely unacceptable that are impacting the experience.”

Ms Darville said all taxi drivers and franchise holders will have to sign up to, and agree to be bound by, the proposed “code of conduct” with the Authority still assessing how best to implement and enforce this. Requiring persons to sign up as part of their bi-annual licence renewal process is presently the preferred method for this.

No timeline was given for when the “code of conduct” will be implemented, or for consultation with stakeholders such as the Bahamas Taxi Cab Union. Ms Darville said improved collection of data on what

is happening in the taxi industry will work alongside the “code of conduct” so that the authorities and private sector partners will gain “a better understanding of what is happening from the guest or visitor user perspective”. She added that the Authority plans to “take that information to help us better enforce our code of conduct and administer penalties to persons who are deviating from those standards”. The type and magnitude of such penalties was not disclosed, but Ms Darville said more details on the data collection will be revealed via the Ministry of Transport and Housing next week following its meeting with the tourism industry and other stakeholders.

Suzanne Pattusch, the BHTA’s executive vicepresident, together with Mr Sands, both said the “huge fees” demanded by taxisand the lack of availability of fare schedules - was a major

complaint from tourists. In response, Ms Darville said: “One of the initiatives we plan to roll-out is to ensure that there is greater visibility of fares.”

Mr Sands, though, said: “A lot of drivers are overcharging because they don’t feel that the current fare schedule is financially viable. Where is the Government in terms of addressing this particular issue so we can get to the position of posting the fees and rid ourselves of over-charging?.... I know it’s a hot topic.”

Wesley Ferguson, the Bahamas Taxi Cab Union’s president, has previously called for up to a 30 percent fare increase to enable drivers to maintain profit margins amid higher fuel costs and an escalating cost of living. Ms Darville yesterday said the Government will make an announcement on taxi fares “next week” following the meeting, but did not pre-empt that with any details.

N O T I C E

EXXONMOBIL OIL & GAS INVESTMENTS LIMITED

Creditors having debts or claims against the above-named Company are required to send particulars thereof to the undersigned c/o P.O. Box N-624, Nassau, Bahamas on or before 24th day of May, A.D., 2023. In default thereof they will be excluded from the benefit of any distribution made by the Liquidator.

Dated the 28th day of April, A.D., 2023.

Douglas F. Wezniak Liquidator 5959 Las Colinas Boulevard, Irving, Texas 75039-2298 U.S.A.

Acknowledging visitor concerns that they are not being charged the correct taxi fares, and that a fare schedule is “not visible”, she added: “The Government has committed, because there’s a recognition that the cost of living has gone up and there is inflation, and so we do understand taxi cab drivers are challenged with the existing fares.

“I think the Government has come to a decision, and something will be proposed to address the issue with taxi drivers. More information as to what that will look like will be announced next week. We are going to be introducing some form of survey, and will be making more information available. We will be heavily leveraging technology in this regard to make sure fares are made available to visitors and anyone for that matter.”

Responding to tourism industry representatives decrying the absence of meters in taxis, Ms Darville

said: “That’s required by regulations that all taxis have meters. There are some challenges with enforceability. I can’t say with certainty that all taxis are metered. The regulations do specify minimum fares, from the airport and from point A to point B, and point B to point C etc. Then there are regulations that can be set by time and for you hiring by the hour and every half hour after.

“Those rates will be confirmed, but if we’re giving taxi drivers I guess what they’re asking for or trying to appease them, we’re asking for something in return. And so this is where we’re looking to roll out the ‘code of conduct’ and say to them these are the challenges that we’ve been having by our guests, by our industry stakeholders, and so we need you to help us address that as we work to address what your needs are.”

NOTICE

NOTICE is hereby given that NANDITHA GURUVAIAH SRIDHARA, of Village Road Apartment 3, No. #21, Brooklyn Road, New Providence, The Bahamas applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for Registration Naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 28th day of April 2023 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.

LEGAL NOTICE

N O T I C E

ESSO EXPLORATION AND PRODUCTION ANGOLA INVESTMENTS LIMITED

N O T I C E IS HEREBY GIVEN as follows:

(a) ESSO EXPLORATION AND PRODUCTION ANGOLA INVESTMENTS LIMITED is in dissolution under the provisions of the International Business Companies Act 2000.

(b) The dissolution of the said Company commenced on the 26th day of April, 2023 when its Articles of Dissolution were submitted to and registered by the Registrar General.

(c) The Liquidator of the said Company is Douglas F. Wezniak, of 5959 Las Colinas Boulevard, Irving, Texas 75039-2298, U.S.A.

Dated the 28th day of April, 2023

HARRY B. SANDS, LOBOSKY MANAGEMENT CO. LTD.

Registered Agent for the above-named Company

LEGAL NOTICE

N O T I C E EXXONMOBIL OIL & GAS INVESTMENTS LIMITED

N O T I C E IS HEREBY GIVEN as follows:

(a) EXXONMOBIL OIL & GAS INVESTMENTS LIMITED is in dissolution under the provisions of the International Business Companies Act 2000.

(b) The dissolution of the said Company commenced on the 26th day of April, 2023 when its Articles of Dissolution were submitted to and registered by the Registrar General.

(c) The Liquidator of the said Company is Douglas F. Wezniak, of 5959 Las Colinas Boulevard, Irving, Texas 75039-2298, U.S.A.

Dated the 28th day of April, 2023.

HARRY B. SANDS, LOBOSKY MANAGEMENT CO. LTD.

Registered Agent for the above-named Company

LEGAL NOTICE

N O T I C E ESSO EXPLORATION AND PRODUCTION ANGOLA INVESTMENTS LIMITED

Creditors having debts or claims against the above-named Company are required to send particulars thereof to the undersigned c/o P.O. Box N-624, Nassau, Bahamas on or before 24th day of May, A.D., 2023. In default thereof they will be excluded from the benefit of any distribution made by the Liquidator.

Dated the 28th day of April, A.D., 2023.

Douglas F. Wezniak Liquidator 5959 Las Colinas Boulevard, Irving, Texas 75039-2298 U.S.A.

BAHA MAR TEASES MELIA PLAN AS VOLUMES UP 20%

$100m renovation via a project that was to create some 150 construction jobs.

It added that the sevenacre, 694-room resort, which also featured 32 suites, was to undergo “a complete transformation” with rooms, common areas, restaurants and bars, and outdoor spaces including three freshwater pools included in the renovations. The property was to reopen in 2023, which now seems unlikely.

Meanwhile, Baha Mar’s president said: “We’ve had an extraordinary first quarter here at Baha Mar across all our brands. I’m pleased to announce that, certainly from a first quarter standpoint, we’re up 45 percent year-over-year.”

Mr Davis conceded that the first three months of 2023 were up against

slightly weaker prior year comparatives because of the Omicron COVID variant “break-out” that occurred in early 2022, but added that Baha Mar has “seen a significant amount of demand” for each of its Grand Hyatt, Rosewood and SLS resort properties. “We hit in March an all-time record for the property,” he explained. “Just 90 percent would be the round-up for occupancy across all three brands, with the Hyatt actually exceeding [that]. Again, a record month. The pace for the rest of the year looks very strong. We’re right now up 20 percent year-over-year in volume for 2023 over 2022.

“Our restaurants remain strong. We continue to see group business and the bookings, even for next year into 2024, are well over

any prior years. Looking at the future, 2024 is still quite strong on the group booking side. The leisure business, it’s not seeing any slowdown, particularly with the summer months. We’re starting to see that window of bookings come in. There’s a little bit of a slowdown in May but nothing concerning. The summer looks very bright.”

Noting that Baha Mar will host the Derek Jeter Foundation tournament, named after the MLB baseball legend, on May 8 through that weekend, Mr Davis added: “All in all, good news” as the Cable Beach property celebrates its sixth anniversary. Similar sentiments were voiced by Jackson Weech, Atlantis’ general manager of operations, who said the Paradise Island mega resort is “very near to completion” on

the renovation of all 1,200 rooms at its Royal Towers.

“I’m in the enviable position of being able to report a similar type of performance as it relates to Atlantis, with ADR (average daily room rate) occupancy and room revenue having all exceeded expectations thus far for 2023. The achieved occupancies and room revenues certainly continue to pace ahead of 2019.

“We’re particularly encouraged by an uptick in group bookings, and can also report in so far as our marina business is concerned there is evidence of really healthy growth there. On the product side, we continue with our renovations at Royal Towers. That continues unabated, and we are coming very, very near to completion of our renovation of all 1,200 rooms now,” Mr Weech continued.

“Construction and buildout of new dining venues continues at our casino, The Cove and Aquaventure. Looking through the third quarter, and certainly through to the fourth quarter, the pace of business continues to be robust and certainly the pace of bookings continues to be encouraging. In general, a very good picture and it’s our we’ll continue in a positive vein.”

Vernice Walkine, chief executive and president of Nassau Airport Development Company (NAD), the Lynden Pindling International Airport (LPIA) operator, said The Bahamas’ main stopover aviation gateway had recovered to around 92 percent of pre-COVID passenger volumes during the 2023 first quarter.

US SANCTIONS RUSSIA, IRAN ENTITIES FOR DETAINING AMERICANS

By ZEKE MILLER AP White House

Correspondent

THE Biden administration on Thursday sanctioned Russia's Federal Security Service and Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps intelligence organization, accusing them of wrongfully detaining Americans.

It's the first rollout of new sanctions authorizations

established last year by President Joe Biden for use against those holding Americans unjustly captive. Still, the sanctions are largely symbolic, since both organizations already are under sweeping sanctions for an array of malevolent behavior — from election interference and Russia's invasion of Ukraine to support for terrorist activity.

Biden said the safe return of Americans held hostage or wrongfully detained abroad has been a priority since the first day of his presidency. "Today, and every day, our message to Russia, Iran, and the world is holding hostage or wrongfully detaining Americans is unacceptable. Release them immediately," he said in a written statement.

Senior administration officials declined to specify which detentions specifically underpinned the sanctions, saying they were a response to a pattern of actions by the two countries in unjustly holding Americans both currently and in

and have a "direct role in the repression of protests and arrest of dissidents, including dual nationals."

Senior administration officials noted that Thursday's actions were in the works well before the arrest last month of Wall Street

The airport saw 314,732 passengers pass through during January 2023, a figure that represented 94 percent of the volume handled during the same month in 2019 when 334,320 travellers moved through. February and March had returned to 92 percent and 89 percent of 2019 levels, respectively, and the quarter was some 43 percent up on 2022 figures. Ms Walkine said air traffic movements at LPIA over the Easter holiday, which include take-offs and landings, totalled almost 3,000 and were up 3 percent year-over-year. She added that the peak travel period was handled “quite efficiently”, with LPIA, air traffic control and fixed base operators (FBOs) all working together to manage the traffic flow.

American Paul Whelan with that designation in Russia. In addition to targeting the two organizations, the administration is also adding additional sanctions on four IRGC leaders it alleges are involved in hostage taking efforts. Brian E. Nelson, Treasury's under secretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, said the U.S. is "committed to bringing

AUDITORS’ REPORT

INDEPENDENT

To the Shareholder of CBH Bahamas Ltd.

Report on the Audit of the Consolidated Financial Statements

Opinion

We have audited the consolidated financial statements of CBH Bahamas Ltd. and its wholly owned subsidiaries (together, “the Group”), which comprise the consolidated statement of financial position as at December 31, 2022, the consolidated statements of comprehensive income, changes in equity and cash flows for the year then ended, and notes, comprising significant accounting policies and other explanatory information.

In our opinion, the accompanying consolidated financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the consolidated financial position of the Group as at December 31, consolidated financial performance and its consolidated cash flows for the year then ended accordance with IFRS Standards as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board (IFRS Standards).

Basis for Opinion

We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (“ISAs”). Our responsibilities under those standards are further described in the Auditors’ Responsibilities for the Audit of the Consolidated Financial Statements section of our report. We are independent of the Group in accordance with the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants International Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants (including International Independence Standards) (IESBA Code), and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with the IESBA Code. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and provide a basis for our opinion.

Responsibilities of Management and Those Charged with Governance for the Consolidated Financial Statements

Management is responsible for the preparation and fair presentation of the consolidated financial statements in accordance with IFRS Standards, and for such internal control as management determines is necessary to enable the preparation of consolidated financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.

In preparing the consolidated financial statements, management is responsible for assessing the Group’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless management either intends to liquidate the Group or to cease operations, or has no realistic alternative but to do so.

Those charged with governance are responsible for overseeing the Group’s financial reporting process.

Auditors’ Responsibilities for the Audit of the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued)

Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the consolidated financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditors’ report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance, but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs will always a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these consolidated financial statements. As part of an audit in accordance with ISAs, we exercise professional judgment and maintain professional skepticism throughout the audit. We also:

• Identify and assess the risks of material misstatement of the consolidated financial statements, whether due to fraud or error, design and perform audit procedures responsive to those risks, and obtain audit evidence that is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion. The risk of not detecting a material misstatement resulting from fraud is higher than for one resulting from error, as fraud may involve collusion, forgery, intentional omissions, misrepresentations, or the override of internal control.

• Obtain an understanding of internal control relevant to the audit in order to design audit procedures that are appropriate in the circumstances, but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the Group’s internal control

• Evaluate the appropriateness of accounting policies used and the reasonableness of accounting estimates and related disclosures made by management.

• Conclude on the appropriateness of management’s use of the going concern basis of accounting and, based on the audit evidence obtained, whether a material uncertainty exists related to events or conditions that may cast significant doubt on the Group’s ability to continue as a going concern. If we conclude that a material uncertainty exists, we are required to draw attention in our auditors’ report to the related disclosures in the consolidated financial statements or, if such disclosures are inadequate, to modify our opinion. Our conclusions are based on the audit evidence obtained up to the date of our auditors’ report. However, future events or conditions may cause the Group to cease to continue as a going concern.

• Evaluate the overall presentation, structure and content of the consolidated financial statements, including the disclosures, and whether the consolidated financial statements represent the underlying transactions and events in a manner that achieves fair presentation. Obtain sufficient appropriate audit evidence regarding the financial information of the entities or business activities within the Group to express an opinion on the consolidated financial statements. We are responsible for the direction, supervision and performance of the group audit. We remain solely responsible for our audit opinion. We communicate with those charged with governance regarding, among other matters, the planned scope and timing of the audit and significant audit findings, including any significant deficiencies in internal control that we identify during our audit. April

CBH BAHAMAS LTD.

Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements

Year ended December 31, 2022 (Expressed in thousands of Swiss Francs)

1.General Information

CBH Bahamas Ltd. (“the Bank”), formerly CBH (Bahamas) Ltd., was incorporated under the laws of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas on December 19, 1994. The Bank is licensed under The Bahamas Banks and Trust Companies Regulations Act and holds a public banking license to provide a full range of banking, trust and corporate management services. On October 29, 2009 the name of the Bank was changed from Banque SCS Alliance (Nassau) Ltd. to CBH (Bahamas) Ltd. to align with its parent’s name change

The Bank is a wholly-owned subsidiary of CBH Compagnie Bancaire Helvétique S.A., Geneva, Switzerland (“the Parent”). The Bank has four wholly-owned subsidiaries, Remus Investments Ltd., Romulus Investments Ltd., Castor Management Ltd. and Pollux Corporate Services Ltd (collectively described as nominee companies), all of which were incorporated and licensed under the laws of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas. The subsidiaries act as nominee companies for the Bank and its clients and carry on no other trust business. The consolidated financial statements include the accounts of the Bank and its wholly owned subsidiaries (together, “the Group”).

The registered office of the Bank is located at CBH House, East Bay Street, P.O. Box N-1724, Nassau, Bahamas.

The accompanying consolidated statement of financial position is an extract from the Bank’s consolidated financial statements. The auditors’ report included herewith should be read in conjunction with the full set of consolidated financial statements, which can be obtained at, or requested in writing from, the Bank’s registered office, CBH House, East Bay Street, Nassau, Bahamas.

Authorities target taxi inspection crackdown

Noting that an increasing number of drivers appear to be foreigners, he recalled how a friend wanted to go to the Margaritaville Resort in downtown Nassau at The Pointe and the taxi cab operator did not know where it was. Latia Duncombe, the Ministry of Tourism’s director-general, in response said this stem from whether the Bahama Host curriculum was sufficiently broad enough or certain protocols are possibly not being followed.

Ms Darville, meanwhile, pledging that the Road Traffic Act will likely undergo a total transformation, said:

“We recognise that our Road Traffic Act is completely antiquated and does not currently address our

environmental, our economic or social realities. To-date, we are currently in the process of doing a complete overhaul of the Road Traffic Act, which is by no means a small undertaking.

It’s massive.”

She added that too much of The Bahamas’ current road traffic regulatory regime is governed by policies, which are open to different interpretations and can be changed on a whim. This, the Authority chair added, has caused the “inconsistent application of standards across the board”.

“What we intend by this is to modernise and transform the Road Traffic sector,” Ms Darville said. “Currently we’re relying a lot on policy. Often times people cannot articulate policy, and other policies are

introduced. It leads to an inconsistent application of standards across the board. We’ll be legislating a lot of things very critical to the visitor experience.”

This, she indicated, will likely include the fitness and propriety of persons to act as taxi drivers and hold franchises. “There should be minimum standards for background and character,”

Ms Darville said, pointing to the “inconsistent application” of how drivers ought to be dressed.

“We do currently have regulations on appearance and standards of dress, but that is not currently enforced. Even what currently exists, there’s no uniformity in it in my opinion,” she added. “Look at everyone who, by their standards and opinion, is compliant. It’s not uniform,

and that’s another thing we will attempt to address through the Road Traffic Act enhancements.”

Ms Darville revealed the Authority had hoped to launch an enhanced vehicle inspection process for taxis this May, but that deadline is no longer likely to be met.

“There’s a lot of persons being able to circumvent the system and circumvent the process,” she asserted. “We do see vehicles on the road that really should not probably be licensed as taxis.

“We’ve now started the process, and will validate the inspection process through decals that will show drivers and vehicles have gone through those steps that are documented. That will be enforced by the authority and will be required to be followed by all persons

Microsoft's 'good guy' approach frays in UK gaming battle

By MATT O'BRIEN AP Technology Writer

MICROSOFT'S charm

offensive with the world's governments is starting to lose some of its luster as the software giant is confronting its toughest antitrust scrutiny since co-founder Bill Gates was in charge.

A blow came this week when British regulators said they would block Microsoft's planned $69-billion takeover of video game maker Activision Blizzard, threatening to undermine what could be the priciest tech acquisition ever.

Microsoft's policy chief responded by calling it a "bad day for Britain" that

could make it an unattractive place to do business and warned Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's government "it needs to look hard" at the role of its antitrust regulator.

"This decision, I have to say, is probably the darkest day in our four decades in Britain," the company's president, Brad Smith, told

BBC Radio 4. "It does more than shake our confidence in the future of the opportunity to grow a technology business in Britain than we've ever confronted before."

The sharp tone marked a shift for Microsoft, and Smith in particular, who joined the company in 1993 and helped defend it

participating in the inspection process.” Compliance with inspection standards is being viewed as one way to enhance the visitor’s ground transportation experience.

Ms Darville assured Majestic Tours’ Mr Saunders that there would be full consultation on the proposed Road Traffic Act reforms prior to the issuance of a socalled ‘white paper’ inviting feedback from the general public. He agreed that the Act is “old and antiquated, and needs to be changed”, but added: “The biggest problem that we find is the education.”

Noting that all drivers have to pass through Bahama Host training to gain their tour badge and public service badge, Mr Saunders questioned whether the initiative is

from antitrust enforcers in the U.S. and Europe who targeted the company's personal computer software empire centered around the Windows operating system.

"Basically, this is Microsoft and Brad Smith throwing their toys out of the pram after they didn't get the decision they wanted after all the lobbying they did," said Max von Thun, director of the Europe office of the Open

having the desired effect. “I had a driver that came to us and he did not know where Gregory’s Arch was,” the tour operator recalled. “A lot of drivers cannot speak English. I have a friend who wanted to go to Margaritaville and the driver did not know where Margaritaville was.

“The one thing that was not mentioned in that was the education side of things to ensure the drivers are better prepared not only in Bahama Host but the schools to ensure everybody knows that the guests don’t have to come here; they can go anywhere in the world, and it’s a privilege that we have these guests. That’s one of the big things that we need to be acting on.”

Markets Institute, a proponent of stronger antitrust enforcement. After legal battles starting in the late 1990s, Microsoft came close to having to break up its business but ended up agreeing to concessions instead. It was eclipsed for a time by rivals like Google, Facebook and Amazon, which drew closer scrutiny from both Wall Street and regulators.