Jamaica’s authorities have given reassurance of efforts being committed to preserve the integrity of the country’s financial system and safeguard stakeholders’ interests.
This assurance comes from the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service and the Bank of Jamaica (BOJ), in light of a case of alleged fraud being investigated at investment firm, Stocks and Securities Limited (SSL).
The Financial Services Commission (FSC) indicated that the investigations are being undertaken by the Financial Investigations Division (FID), among others.
The agency appointed Ken Tomlinson of Business Recovery Services Limited as the Special Auditor for SSL. He is also serving as the securities firm’s Temporary Manager.
Finance Minister, Dr. the Hon. Nigel Clarke, in a statement, noted that the country is the leading financial centre in the English-speaking Caribbean and, as such, assured that “we will do everything in our power to protect Jamaica’s position in this regard.”
Dr. Clarke, who said the matter being investigated has been the “source of public discussion and anxiety,” acknowledged that “at this time, it is tempting to doubt our financial institutions”.
“But I would ask that we don’t paint an entire hard-working industry with the brush of a few very dishonest individuals,” he urged, while expressing “great confidence in the investigative authorities to unravel all aspects of this [matter] and bring all perpetrators to justice”.
Meanwhile, the BOJ, in a statement, indicated that its supervised deposit-taking institutions, comprising commercial banks, building societies, and one merchant bank, remain adequately capitalised, liquid, safe and secure.
Additionally, the Central Bank said its ongoing regulatory oversight of these institutions “remains rigorous”.
The BOJ alluded to recent reports of alleged fraud involving financial institutions and intimated its concern about these developments and their potential to negatively affect confidence in Jamaica’s financial system.
“The Central Bank notes that in the recent case of alleged fraud at a commercial bank, the stringent internal controls insisted on by the BOJ assisted in the early detection of irregular transactions and ensured that the risk was kept to a minimal level, relative to the capitalisation of the institution,” the BOJ pointed out.
The Bank of Jamaica advised that the institutions it supervises are required by law to have all their assets and liabilities recorded on balance sheets and is working with them to continuously upgrade and strengthen their internal safeguard controls.
This entails ensuring fraud prevention and early detection systems, including the deployment of advanced, technological reporting and analytic tools at globally accepted levels.
“The basis of a strong and resilient financial system is the confidence clients have in knowing that their funds are safe and secure and can be accessed in a timely manner. Bank of Jamaica continues to work with all stakeholders to ensure that this confidence is maintained,” the Central Bank said.