Section 43 (b) of the Financial Transactions Reporting Act, Chapter 368 (the FTRA) authorizes the Compliance Commission to conduct On-Site Examinations (OSE) of the financial institutions listed in Section 46 of the FTRA.

The Compliance Commission’s AML On-Site Examination ensures that the AML laws are being fully complied with. The examination entails a comprehensive review of the AML policies and procedures of the financial institution being examined.

There are four types of OSEs conducted by the Compliance Commission- these are Routine, Follow-up, Random and Investigative (Special) Examinations. Routine examinations are conducted by duly appointed auditors as agents of the Compliance Commission. All other types are conducted by the Compliance Commission.

All OSEs conducted by the Compliance Commission are risk-based. This means that financial institutions with strong AML policies & procedures will require less frequent OSEs than those with weak (inadequate) AML systems. The former may be placed on a two or three year OSE cycle while the latter group will be examined no less than once annually.

On-Site Examinations

1. Each year, a financial institution is required to submit its operations to an AML/CFT examination by the Commission’s Examiners or an Accountant duly appointed to act as an agent of the Commission.

or

Off-Site Examinations

1. If the financial institution has been granted a waiver which exempts it from submitting to the routine OSE for a given period. In which case the institution is required to conduct an off-site examination for that waiver period. The financial institution is required to have a Senior Officer (preferably the Money Laundering Reporting Officer) complete the examination from in-house and forward it on to the Commission’s office.
2. The OSE reviews five operational areas of the financial institution:
   I. the verification/ identification of customers;
   II. the maintenance of customer verification and transactions records;
   III. the reporting of suspicious transactions to the FIU;
   IV. the appointment of a Money Laundering Reporting Officer; and
   V. the internal procedures for training staff on the detection and prevention of money laundering.
   

Anti-Money laundering and combating the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) Examination Forms for each type of financial institution supervised by the Commission are listed below in Adobe PDF format and can be filled out online.

Accountants
Designated Government Agencies
Law Firms
Real Estate Brokers

No additional documents needed.

Section 43 (b) of the FTRA mandates that the Routine OSE is conducted at the expense of the financial institution being examined. The OSEs conducted by the Compliance Commission bear no cost to the financial institution.

 

Compliance Commission
Poinciana House
#34 East Bay Street
Nassau
New Providence
The Bahamas
Phone: (242) 604-4323, 604-4331, 604-4333
Email: compliance@bahamas.gov.bs

Opening Hours: Monday through Friday, 9:00am to 5:00pm