Guernsey Crown Dependency Of The United Kingdom Assessment Of The Supervision And Regulation Of The Financial Sector Volume Ii Detailed Assessment Of Observance Of Standards And Codes

The financial services sector plays a dominant role in the economy of Guernsey. The report is organized in two volumes. Volume I provides the findings and the Reports on the Observance of Standards and Codes (ROSCs). Volume II provides the detailed assessments of the Basel Core Principles for Effective Banking Supervision, the insurance core principles, the objectives and principles of securities regulation, and the financial action task force recommendations, as well as a review against the Offshore Group of Banking Supervisors (OGBS) statement of best practice for trust and company service providers.

The completion of the detailed assessment serves several purposes. First, it benchmarks the current state of banking supervision, recognizing that there have been extensive changes in the last years. Second, it suggests a number of further improvements or changes. Thus, this report provides a key input for the development of an action plan to move toward full compliance with the Core Principles. The assessment of the effectiveness of banking supervision was based on a review of the legal framework.

This assessment of the Basel Core Principles for Effective Banking Supervision has been completed as part of the IMF Offshore Financial Center (OFC) assessment program. First, the assessment benchmarks the current state of banking supervision, recognizing that there have been extensive changes in the last few years. Second, it suggests a number of further improvements or changes. Thus, this report provides a key input for the development of an action plan to move toward full compliance with the Core Principles.

This paper examines the Financial System Stability Assessment on Jersey. Most banks in Jersey are branches or subsidiaries of large international groups, to which they provide financing. This close relationship reduces risk in normal times, given the groups’ ability to support their Jersey operations. The Jersey Financial Services Commission has significantly reformed the regulatory framework of funds, mainly to make Jersey funds more attractive to institutional investors. A key challenge in insurance supervision is to maintain effective and proportionate regulation of a small sector with limited insurance risk.

Jersey has put in place a comprehensive and robust Antimoney Laundering/Combating the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) legal framework with a high level of compliance with almost all aspects of the Financial Action Task Force recommendations. The paper discusses a Detailed Assessment of Observance of AML/CFT report on Jersey. Both money laundering and financing of terrorism are criminalized largely in line with the international standard, and Jersey has implemented the provisions effectively.

Gibraltar’s Detailed Assessment Report on Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Combating the Financing of Terrorism is reviewed. The principal AML risk to Gibraltar is lodged in its professional sector, which is likely to be involved in the layering and integration of proceeds of crime. There is also some risk to Gibraltar at the placement stage, in connection with drug trafficking, migrant smuggling, and organized crime in southern Spain. The Financial Services Commission in Gibraltar has established a strong, risk-based framework for financial institutions for AML.

The Basel Core Principles for Effective Banking Supervision (BCP) assessment confirms the high standard of prudential regulation and supervision described in the 2003 assessment, and found that the issues identified have largely been addressed. The Guernsey Financial Services Commission (GFSC), being the integrated regulator, is responsible for the regulation and supervision of all financial institutions and services provided on the island, and as the banking supervisor, has disciplinary powers to address safety and soundness issues. The GFSC cooperates with the home supervisors of institutions active on the island. Several broad areas for further action have been identified.

This paper presents key findings of the Detailed Assessment of the Observance of Standards and Codes in the Financial Sector of Bermuda. The small number of licensed deposit-taking institutions in Bermuda are part of the broader financial intermediation sector. Typically, some 50 percent to 60 percent of the banks’ income is fee based. The value of client assets and the volume of their activities are the main generators of this income. Efforts to reduce employee and occupancy costs that reflect the high cost of doing business on the island are continuing.