The Tribune

The recent Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP) Caribbean conference allowed The Bahamas to spotlight the products that “set us apart from other financial centres”.

The Bahamas Financial Services Board (BFSB) sponsored the conference, held at the Baha Mar resort, which attracted more than 200 legal, trust and wealth management practitioners from across the globe.

Tanya McCartney, the BFSB’s chief executive and executive director, said: “The Bahamas has a firm legacy in trust and estate planning. Expertise in this area is a core element of the Bahamas’ value proposition in international financial services. Hence sponsoring such an event as STEP Caribbean allowed us to put the spotlight on what sets us apart from other

financial centres.”

STEP is the worldwide professional association for financial services executives who specialise in family inheritance and succession planning. This year was the fourth time that the Bahamas has hosted the STEP Caribbean conference.

This year’s event highlighted the need for international financial centres (IFCs) to be forward thinking and innovative as they grapple with global regulatory changes. The theme, Mind the Gap: Future-Proofing IFCs, allowed delegates to discuss issues that affect Caribbean jurisdictions, in particular, especially on regulation, compliance and transparency.

Brent Symonette, minister of financial services, trade and industry and Immigration, said in his opening address: “Differentiation and redefining the role of the IFC of the future will be absolutely vital, and I remain convinced that forward-thinking IFCs like The Bahamas can position themselves in new ways to play a positive, specialist role for the management and preservation of wealth.

“As one of the leading IFCs in the region, The Bahamas is in a good position. We will continue to strengthen this position to ensure that our financial services sector remains a key pillar of future economic growth.”

Bahamian presenters included former minister of financial services, Ryan Pinder, now a partner at Graham, Thompson & Co, who spoke to the resilience of Caribbean IFCs and the need for them to adapt and survive. Attorney Cherise Cox-Nottage, of UBS Trustees (Bahamas); Heather Thompson of Higgs & Johnson; and Linda D’Aguilar, a partner in the Glinton, Sweeting and O’Brien law firm, all address the conference.

A panel discussion on the challenges and advantages that millennials face while working in a professional services industry was led by Theo Burrows, partner, Graham Thompson; Brett Higgs, TSX Trust Company; Matthew Arnett, PO8; and William Seymour, Princess Margaret & Doctor’s Hospital.