The Tribune

By NATARIO McKENZIE

Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

VOLUNTARY company dissolutions are expected to be available online within the 2015 first quarter, the Attorney General has revealed.

Allyson Maynard-Gibson said that as part of the the Registrar General’s Department’s automation, o International Business Company (IBC) and Companies Act pilot projects would be launched in early December.

Speaking at the Bahamas Financial Services Board’s (BFSB) annual excellence awards dinner on Friday, Mrs Maynard-Gibson said: “The Prime Minister has set the tone for public-private sector collaboration and cooperation.

“The fruit of this collaboration is the development of new product legislation, like the ICON. This collaboration was also critically important in developing, at the Registrar General’s Department, the new automated system to incorporate IBCs and Companies Act companies entirely online – from name registration to obtaining the certificate of incorporation.”

Mrs Maynard-Gibson added: “The target date for the IBC pilot project is December 1, and for the Companies Act pilot project is December 8. We expect that voluntary dissolutions will be available online within the first quarter of 2015.

“In the meantime, the manual process for such dissolutions has been streamlined, and we expect that you will see a marked improvement in delivery times. Also this year we expect that Notary Public licenses will be applied for and issued online.”

Mrs Maynard-Gibson said that in a competitive financial services environment, expertise, excellence and efficiency would help distinguish this nation.

“Recently, after extensive consultations with the industry led by BFSB, AIBT and the Ministry of Financial Services, the Government of the Bahamas announced our commitment to implementing global standards on the automatic exchange of information by 2018,” she said.

“Next year, the Bahamas will undergo the CFATF Fourth Round Review. In order to sustain and expand the sector, especially in an era of transparency, the Bahamas must stand out as a centre of expertise, efficiency and excellence.”