Offshore database on hold
THE COMPANIES Office of Jamaica (COJ) has withdrawn its recent request for public tender for the services of a consultant to assist in setting up and operating an offshore business registry.
It formed part of Jamaica’s International Financial Services Centre initiative that would position the country to better compete for funds that are destined for havens like the Cayman Islands and Switzerland.
“The public tender has been withdrawn as the required legal framework is not yet in place,” stated the Companies Office in a release on Thursday.
The withdrawn tender was issued in February by the COJ.
The COJ further explained that the legal framework will need to be aligned with the 2023 amendments to the Companies Act on beneficial ownership and will need to comply with international standards, inclusive of Jamaica’s Financial Action Task Force commitments.
Prior to being withdrawn, the tender document indicated that Jamaica wanted to attract a portion of the US$7 trillion (J$10.5 quadrillion) in capital market funds that slush around the globe seeking a home. That’s more than 300 times Jamaica’s GDP output, or what it produces in a year.
The Jamaican Government, in an attempt to develop the sector, set up the Jamaica International Financial Services Authority (JIFSA), which falls under the Ministry of Industry, Investment and Commerce. It’s tasked with overseeing the sector and operates under the legal mandate of the JIFSA Act passed in 2011.
The COJ would act as the body that registers and manages the database of local and offshore companies. The release from the COJ indicates that more legal work, however, needs to happen, before the set-up of the offshore database.