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BREAK FINANCIAL 'STATUS QUO' VIA 23% GDP GOAL

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor The financial services industry's direct GDP contribution could grow to 22-23 per cent within five-seven years if the Bahamas was bold enough to break with the "status quo" position it has maintained for the past

Bahamas can’t afford ‘another five years’ of secretive governance

The Bahamas cannot afford “another five-year cycle” of unaccountable government spending, a governance reformer warned yesterday, arguing that a Fiscal Responsibility Act should have “preceded” Value-Added Tax (VAT).

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Governor to ‘bridge gap’ between banks, web shops

The Central Bank’s governor has reaffirmed his commitment to “bridge the gap” between the commercial banking industry and web shop operators, and help ease his licensees’ compliance concerns.

Sixty-day termination notice ‘recipe for woe’

The National Tripartite Council’s co-chairman has branded the proposed ‘60-day advance notice’ that employers must give of impending redundancies as “a recipe for putting your business in trouble”.

12 union-saving law creates a ‘win-win’

The Government’s recent 12 union-saving legislation helped produce what one labour executive yesterday described as a “win-win” in the Court of Appeal, with a Harbour Island resort and its opposition both achieving their main objectives.

TUC chief: ‘jury still out’ on union-saving legislation

A trade union leader said yesterday that “the jury is still out” on whether the Government’s recent union-saving had truly “cured the mischief”, as one attorney confirmed he had filed for a Judicial Review over the issue.

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‘No doubt over VAT chaos’ on January 1

A well-known businessman yesterday said he had “no doubt” the Government will be unable to seamlessly implement Value-Added Tax (VAT) come January 1, suggesting “chaos” would result from failing to promptly educate the private sector.

Banks: SWITCH 'decision likely' by end-April

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor The commercial banking industry will "likely make some decisions" by end-April 2012 on the establishment of a local SWITCH network, something that will allow Bahamians debit card access to funds in their chequing

Banks: SWITCH 'decision likely' by end-April

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor The commercial banking industry will "likely make some decisions" by end-April 2012 on the establishment of a local SWITCH network, something that will allow Bahamians debit card access to funds in their chequing

Banks: SWITCH 'decision likely' by end-April

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor The commercial banking industry will "likely make some decisions" by end-April 2012 on the establishment of a local SWITCH network, something that will allow Bahamians debit card access to funds in their chequing

SPEED WEEK CHIEF EYES 2,500-3,000 EXTRA ROOM NIGHTS

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor Bahamas Speed Week's president has estimated that the revival event generated between 2,500-3,000 room nights for the Bahamian hotel industry, describing its economic impact as "quite substantial". While Bahamas S

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‘No guarantees’ for web shops

Web shop operators were yesterday said to be “very concerned” over the uncertainty and lack of any guarantees surrounding the industry’s impending legalisation.

Baha Mar guest: ‘I’ll only return to look at the ruins’

A Houston entrepreneur says he will never return to the Bahamas unless it is to view “the ruins of the Baha Mar disaster”, after the enforced cancellation of his wedding left him $100,000 “out of pocket”.

Ex-Hard Rock franchisee queries transfer to ex-MP

Hard Rock Cafe's former Nassau franchisee has questioned why the business was so readily handed to its Bahamian landlord, when a decade earlier he had been "forced" to pay $1 million to end their partnership.

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$600m Sarkis claims branded 'hogwash'

An ex-Baha Mar director has slammed as "hogwash" claims that Sarkis Izmirlian lacked the $600 million financing needed to complete the project, accusing the Government of "playing the blame game".

Port's 25% growth hides missed trade potential

Freeport is failing to attract “a wider range” of businesses and become a true logistics/distribution hub, despite the Container Port outstripping all Caribbean rivals with 25 per cent cargo throughput growth.

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'Madness': 90% of loan requests are consumer

The Bahamas' consumer loan "madness" is making sustainable economic development impossible, as more than nine out of every 10 credit applications fall into this category.

Gov't urged: 'Change air cargo fines today'

The Government has been urged to "amend right away this Monday" the new and increased Customs sanctions on air cargo operators, a Bahamian courier company branding them "ridiculous".

IMF slashes Bahamas 2016 growth to 1.5%

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has slashed its 2016 growth forecast for the Bahamas by a further 0.7 percentage points to just 1.5 per cent, due to the Baha Mar impasse.

SEC moving for sanctions against broker’s principal

US federal regulators are seeking sanctions and a default judgment against the Bahamian principal of a broker/dealer for failure to comply with a New York court’s order.