Financial Crime

On the 20th day of January 2022, the Commission imposed a discretionary financial penalty of £196,000 on Robert Archibald Gilchrist Sinclair and prohibited him from holding the position of controller,* director, partner, manager, money laundering reporting officer and money laundering compliance officer for a period of 5.6 years. The exemption set out in section 3(1)(g) of the Fiduciaries Law...

The Financial Services Business (Enforcement Powers) (Bailiwick of Guernsey) Law, 2020 (“the Enforcement Powers Law”) The Regulation of Fiduciaries, Administration Businesses and Company Directors, etc (Bailiwick of Guernsey) Law, 2020 (the “Fiduciaries Law”) The Criminal Justice (Proceeds of Crime) (Financial Services Businesses) (Bailiwick of Guernsey) Regulations, 2007 (“the Regulations”) The...

Further to our news article dated 1 December (click here), the Commission wishes to advise that it will not accept Surrenders and Suspensions from licensees and registrants on Christmas Eve or New Year's Eve without prior arrangement.

Ahead of distributing 2022 annual fees, licensees and registrants who wish to surrender or suspend their licence (or one that they administer) must notify the Commission in good time ahead of the New Year. If the Commission does not give consent to a surrender or a suspension based on the notification requirements set out in the regulations, then licensees or registrants may be liable to pay their...

The Commission plans to increase licence fees paid by firms from 1 January 2022 by 7.6% with the agreement of the Policy & Resources Committee. On 16 July 2021, the Commission published a consultation paper on its 2022 fees containing four main proposals:- an overall fee increase of 10.1% for all sectors; a restructuring of fees for the investment sector; changes arising from the update to most of...

The Commission has today updated Appendix I of the Handbook as a result of the FATF's announcement that it has removed Botswana and Mauritius from its list of jurisdictions under increased monitoring. FATF has added Jordan, Mali and Turkey to the list of jurisdictions under increased monitoring and Appendix I of the Handbook has been updated to reflect these changes. Appendix I lists countries and...

Following on from last year, the Commission will be distributing 2022 annual fee invoices using the generic email address that we hold on record for each licensee and registrant. If you wish to check which email address the Commission holds for your firm, please contact '[email protected]', quoting the entity name and GFSC reference number, which can be found on our website ( Regulated Entities...

The Commission wishes to remind all financial services businesses and prescribed businesses (with the exception of personal fiduciary licensees and general insurers) that the Financial Crime Risk Return (“the Return”) is due for submission by 31 October 2021. The Return can be found via the Commission’s Online Submissions Portal, located at https://submit.gfsc.gg/ . Should you have any technical...

The Commission today launches a consultation paper on proposals for increasing the licence fees paid by firms. The consultation period will close on Wednesday 8 September. The Commission’s consultation paper is available here. Feedback may be provided via the Consultation Hub section of the Commission’s website: https://consultationhub.gfsc.gg Taking into account the Commission’s current and...