Gov’t to Push Through Int’l Financial Services Legislation – Minister Hylton

Investment, Industry and Commerce Minister, Hon. Anthony Hylton, says the Government will be moving quickly to pass critical pieces of legislation to facilitate the launch of the International Financial Services Centre.

The Minister, who was addressing a March 12 session of the Jamaica Investment Forum at the Montego Bay Convention Centre in St. James, said he is pushing to have the necessary bills placed before Parliament by the time he makes his contribution to the 2015/16 Budget Debate early April.

“I am committed to getting these things done. They will be done in a speedy fashion. I need for them to be in Parliament by the time I speak on the 8^th of April. We intend to have them passed quickly and we intend to, as we have demonstrated by the various indices, (that) Jamaica means business,” he said.

Minister Hylton said the passage of the financial services legislation will have a positive effect on Jamaica’s efforts to establish the country as a logistics centre.

“I should confess that the investors with the US$5 billion (for the logistics-related infrastructure development) were very interested to know where we are with these pieces of legislation. So it creates the environment for people with real investments…real dollar investments to come to Jamaica to do business,” the Minister said.

The Minister announced on March 11 that the Government and representatives of an overseas investment group are slated to sign a Cabinet-approved Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), totalling US$5 billion for a logistics project.

Also addressing the session was President and Chief Operating Officer of Caymanian Company, Advanced Fund Administration, Peter Young, who said Jamaica is in a good position to become the destination of choice for international financial services.

He said with the expected passage of financial legislation, Jamaica’s potential as a major player in the sector will be realised and there are tremendous benefits to be reaped.

Among the benefits, he cited, was attracting more Fortune 500 companies interested in setting up companies to engage in various tax optimisation arrangements.

“The Jamaican Legal Council can work on creating prime holding companies for high net worth individuals and institutions, and businesses that are seeking to hold assets in a low tax jurisdiction,” he said.

He further noted a boom in real estate development, as persons become interested in living in a jurisdiction where their financial assets are located.

Mr. Young also said that Jamaica could give birth to a new and expanding mutual fund industry with supporting legislation that recognise various investment fund structures for high net worth persons, institutional clients, investment banks and other financial institutions.