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PM: Critics of Bahamas over FTX are ‘unfair’

PRIME Minister Phillip “Brave” Davis.

PRIME Minister Phillip “Brave” Davis.

As of Tuesday, November 22, 2022

By KHRISNA RUSSELL

Tribune Chief Reporter

krussell@tribunemedia.net

AS he expressed concern about The Bahamas suffering reputational damage because of FTX’s implosion, Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis branded criticisms levelled at the country in the international media as an “unfair” characterisation.

Yesterday, Mr Davis also told reporters that he had no knowledge of the Progressive Liberal Party, which he leads, receiving any money from FTX. He said he did not know whether any Cabinet ministers held any FTX digital wallets or portfolios.

“I do not know that,” Mr Davis said yesterday when he was asked directly about himself and Cabinet ministers being involved with the company. “In fact, I’m agnostic to it. I don’t hold any wallet and I’m not aware of any of my Cabinet ministers.”

 He also denied that the government had invested in any form with FTX.

 Mr Davis addressed the issue on the sidelines of a key presentation at the Pinecrest subdivision.

 The Bahamas has grabbed headlines in the international media over the FTX saga. Some commentary has been critical of this country’s digital asset regulations, saying it is one thing to have such laws but another to enforce them.

 Asked what he would say about the criticisms launched at the country in the wake of FTX’s collapse, Mr Davis said: “I think it’s unfair. It’s an unfair characterisation. I’m not concerned about our reputation in that regard because most of what is being said is the posturing of persons who would wish to have the liquidation under their control so once that is settled you will see that everything will blow over.”

 Later during the interview and while responding to a question about government exposure from the situation, the prime minister said: “We have no exposure to it. (The) only issue I am concerned about is I have positioned The Bahamas to be the leading jurisdiction in the digital assets space.

“I am intending to keep that position and the only thing of concern is reputational consequences and I am dealing with that.”

 Mr Davis went on to address assertions about how close government representatives were to the company, stemming from a photo circulating on social media of his senior policy advisor Jerome Fitzgerald attending an FTX office opening in Chicago alongside former PLP Senator Allyson Maynard Gibson and Tanya McCartney, a financial services expert, telling reporters he could not recall whether his advisor attended.

 Mr Davis said The Bahamas-based crypto exchange had invited him to speak during the event and clarified that Mr Fitzgerlad was initially to travel with the prime minister.

 However, Mr Davis said he was unable to be there due to another engagement.

 The photo was shared on social media by FTXs vice president of communications and corporate social responsibility back in May.

 “Whether he went, I don’t recall but I had another engagement and I could not make that trip,” Mr Davis said.

 His comments come amid fears that FTX’s co-founder Sam Bankman-Fried may have violated a Bahamas Supreme Court order when he placed some 134 group entities under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in Delaware.

 US attorneys representing the Bahamian joint provisional liquidators for FTX Digital Markets, the collapsed crypto exchange’s local subsidiary, have raised concerns that Mr Bankman-Fried breached the asset freeze and order obtained by the Securities Commission on Thursday, November 10, through such actions.

 That order, issued by Chief Justice Ian Winder, also stripped Mr Bankman-Fried and his fellow FTX Digital Markets directors of all their powers and transferred control of the company to Brian Simms KC, senior partner at the Lennox Paton law firm. However, the FTX co-founder then signed the documents placing FTX Trading and the group’s non-Bahamian assets into Chapter 11 protection at 4.30am on Friday morning.

On Sunday, Free National Movement Chairman Dr Duane Sands insisted the Davis administration must be seen to want to urgently get to the bottom of the situation, doubling down on his party’s continued calls for transparency.

 FNM leader Michael Pintard has said the Davis administration was obligated to clearly indicate if it had any intimate relationship with companies that are in the country that can give the impression that entities were able to operate with impunity because of the nature of that relationship.

Comments

LastManStanding 1 year, 5 months ago

The fact that SBF is not in Fox Hill right now speaks volumes about how this is going to play out.

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tribanon 1 year, 5 months ago

SBF doled out mega-millions of U.S. dollars to certain members of our very corrupt and elitist political ruling class and their crony partners in exchange for the protection he is now receiving from our government.

The corrupt Davis-led PLP government cannot afford for this guy to spill the beans. The same applies for the upper echelon of the U.S. Democratic Party that received the benefits of the mega-millions of dollars SBF contributed towards tilting the outcome of the recent U.S. mid-term elections.

Truth be told, there isn't a life insurance enterprise in the world right now that would be willing to issue a policy on the life of SBF. This guy knows way too much and therefore his days are likely numbered, much like Jeffrey Epstein's days were numbered.

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tribanon 1 year, 5 months ago

By the way, has anyone noticed The Tribune removes any posting in which I dare mention FTX, SBF, Maxine Waters, Allyson Maynard-Gibson and PM Davis in the same sentence? LOL

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realfreethinker 1 year, 5 months ago

I wondered why your posts were removed for "violation of content posting" lmfao

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Porcupine 1 year, 5 months ago

I guess this is where faith comes in. Both political parties in The Bahamas have had such stellar reputations for honesty and fairness. The Bahamian people are doing so well, even though we need price control, are watching 1 to 2 million dollars a day leave our country, going solely to service our loans. BOB can't make commercial loans because of...... BPL is burning fossil fuels, is effectively broke, while our country gets gouged, and our PM goes and begs for money on the international stage because "the big countries" owe us. Disgusting, yes? We have watched BOB lose hundreds of millions of our dollars, and now the Bahamian people are paying the price.. We have witnessed the sale of BTC so that a handful of politically connected people could make millions, while The Bahamas gave away our cash cow, and our country was subjected to some of the worse phone and internet service in the world. We have watched OBAN come and go. We are still witnessing the Baha Mar debacle. We have watched NIB "wonder" where millions upon millions of dollars have gone.
We have been taxed to death with VAT and the other money grubbing schemes that have plunged our country clearly into the haves and have nots. Time after time, those who were voted in to look after our interests, have betrayed us. This is happening on a daily basis. Anyone who claims the FNM is better than the PLP, or vice versa, only shows themselves to be a fool. Our politicians, across the board, have failed us. The larger question is; "how did we get to be so gullible, so easily fooled by these slippery tongues?" They are no different. Be they born and raised on Cat Island, Long Island or Nassau. They are all now in the club of bullsitters. And, we, over and over, seem to believe that these shysters are more than their empty words and broken promises. This is a national problem. The fish rots from the head down. And, the fish has been rotting long enough for it to have permeated through our entire country. We seem unable to produce intelligent leaders who have our country and community first and foremost. We seem way too impressed with money and power. Good character judgement is gone. I guess we don't care because we embrace the same shallow lies, the bullsit promises that are never kept and the illusion that we are not basically bankrupt as a country. Bankrupt is not just a term I use for our economy.

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ohdrap4 1 year, 5 months ago

https://guardian.ng/life/the-remote-s...">link text

During the Second World War, a group of indigenes in the remote Island of Vanuatu spotted a plane airdrop daily essentials and started a religion based on the worship of cargo aeroplanes.

Cargo cultism, anthropologists describe, is the belief that soldiers who came to their aid during the Second World War and airdropped cargos containing essentials such as televisions, refrigerators, iced Coca-Cola, sweets, radios and medicine are spiritual entities sent to save them and will make a second coming.

The aeroplanes who brought in cargos dropped them in the military airbases meant for the Japanese and the Americans. The soldiers, in turn, shared some with the host community, Tannas. As they shared their goods, they became popular among the islanders who had not seen white skin-colours.

The popularity of this incident saw the rise of cults: the ‘Tom Navy’ which has a US Navy officer as the deity; the Prince Philip cult which believes that the Duke is a mountain spirit awaiting his messianic crowning and John Frum, an unknown US soldier.

“During the war, the cargo religion saw aeroplanes land with lots of good materials, and they want the same thing to happen now. So they’ve arranged to imitate things like runways, to put fires along the sides of the runways, to make a wooden hut for a man to sit in, with two wooden pieces on his head like headphones and bars of bamboo sticking out like antennas, he’s the controller and they wait for the aeroplanes to land.”

Their strategy has only managed to attract tourists.

Aha. I am dressing a Ken doll as SBF.

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tribanon 1 year, 5 months ago

This comment was removed by the site staff for violation of the usage agreement.

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tribanon 1 year, 5 months ago

P.S. By the way, has anyone noticed The Tribune always removes any posting in which I dare mention FTX, SBF, Maxine Waters, Allyson Maynard-Gibson and PM Davis in the same sentence? LOL

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Sickened 1 year, 5 months ago

I have. They are really cutting down on our Free Speech like they've severely cut down on the stories we can comment on.

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One 1 year, 5 months ago

Yes, we aren't afforded freedom of speech and thought. We must be told what to think.

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Sickened 1 year, 5 months ago

We are truly doomed! When is the next sloop heading to the US? I need a space.

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TalRussell 1 year, 5 months ago

And, besides importance paying close attention leading up to 'Calendar's 23 September 2021', -----

If there's another FTX fiasco teachable moment, its.

Never get your Crypto advice from a politician, wearing either colours' T-shirt', from the two mainstream political parties.

This is the time to run out to the store as tis; must to secure yourself a 2021 Calendar -as will become important tool to follow the all ----- 'could've been avoided' ----- were allowed become grossly corruptible by the Bahamas Headquartered FTX ---- Yes?

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One 1 year, 5 months ago

They're all crooks; FNM and PLP. Our leaders were in a feeding frenzy trying to get a cut of FTX when it seemed prosperous. Now they play the victim card. Guaranteed they will be made financially whole again on the back of the Bahamian future.

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TalRussell 1 year, 5 months ago

@ComradeOne, nah, when scarcely little *'truth' still is publicly known about the timing of FTX Hong Kong Headquarters, resurfacing clear out of nowhere to become FTX Bahamas Headquarters'?

It's important know how it all neatly aligned up with the calendar's 23 September 2021?

I'm proceeding with 'Bud Light's' caution, .... First, lets wait and see caution, before I'm personally ready to label anyone, politician or government official, as FTX billions crookeded ---- Yes?

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birdiestrachan 1 year, 5 months ago

The tribune has no obligations to allow any to post it is good that they allow any of us to post I am grateful for the opportunity

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tribanon 1 year, 5 months ago

Spoken like a full fledged card carrying member of the Chinese Communist Party politburo. You really belong in Beijing where you don't have to lift up your head to the rising sun if Chairman Xi orders you not to do. LMAO

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realfreethinker 1 year, 5 months ago

So true. birdie can say that because he/she never makes any meaningful contribution to the discussion

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Sickened 1 year, 5 months ago

Ask some Jews how they now think about freedom being taken away bit by bit.

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johnd 1 year, 5 months ago

thank god for the sand dollar lol lol lol

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sheeprunner12 1 year, 5 months ago

Hope Brave says that when Uncle Sam comes knocking.

What will he say to the Senators when they investigate SBF????

Brave dem already took the gifts, too late.

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TalRussell 1 year, 5 months ago

There's no evidence surfacing in the 'public domain' leads anone to believe that Bahamian authorities are blocking any attempts to exit the colony by FTX Bahamas individuals, nor seizures' of the millions dollars of assets, including the whereabouts it's $32 million plane was paid for out clients missing billions.

And, its Albany luxuries $40 million orgy staging penthouse remains untouched by local authorities.'

Flight Radar Report Shows FTX Co-Founder's Private Jet Flew from the Bahamas to Argentina.

Would've thought local authorities' would've jumped at securing the Jet's 'Passenger Logs?'

And, inquired if Albany's gated community's entrance gate maintains a log of visitors passing through their 24-Hour security-manned gate --- Yes?

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