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Saint Kitts Establishes "Continuing Due Diligence Unit" Headquartered in Europe · IMI Podcasts

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: The Kittian government last week announced in Parliament that it would establish a continuing international due diligence unit to monitor its citizens by investment on an ongoing basis to ensure they continue to meet the ethical standards that allowed them to obtain citizenship in the Federation to begin with.
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  SPEAKER_00: The due diligence unit, said Prime Minister Terence Drew during Friday's sitting in Parliament, where the Assembly debated amendments to the country's citizenship by investment act would, quote, ensure that citizens holding passports issued by St.
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  SPEAKER_00: Keats and Nevis and residing and working internationally abide by the laws of the countries in which they reside and visit, and that they respect the international laws as well, end quote.
• 0:49
  SPEAKER_00: The unit, he explained, would quote, alert the Ministry of National Security of St.
• 0:54
  SPEAKER_00: Keats and Nevis citizens who are being investigated for committing or have been arrested and or charged with financial or other crimes internationally, end quote.
• 1:07
  SPEAKER_00: The initiative, said the Prime Minister, would help protect the Federation's reputation on the international stage and was a reflection of the earnest intent his government had to quote, ensure that we engender confidence in our international partners, that we are serious about their security as well, end quote.
• 1:28
  SPEAKER_00: Mr.
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  SPEAKER_00: Ian M.
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  SPEAKER_00: Quilly, the OECS's ambassador to Morocco and former police commissioner in St.
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  SPEAKER_00: Kitts and Nevis, will lead the new unit, which, according to Loop News, will be headquartered in Europe.
• 1:43
  SPEAKER_00: Ongoing due diligence on already approved applicants was among the terms agreed to in the Pan-Caribbean Memorandum of Agreement signed by four out of five of the region's CBI country prime ministers in March.
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  SPEAKER_00: The MOA also included provisions for a joint price floor of$200,000, information sharing, equal treatment of applicants, and other aims meant to harmonize the region's programs while mollifying the concerns raised by the EU and the US.
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  SPEAKER_00: St.
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  SPEAKER_00: Lucia, the region's only CBI country to initially refrain from signing, has also signaled its intent to ratify the accord, though their signature has yet to be confirmed.
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  SPEAKER_00: The MOA is slated to take effect on June 30th, and while Grenada's CBI boss Thomas Anthony has indicated he expects to be ready for implementation by then, other industry observers believe the Caribbean governments will need more time to coordinate their policies.
• 2:49
  SPEAKER_00: The contents of the MOA also correspond closely to the six CBI principles that all Caribbean CBI countries agreed to with the United States Treasury in March last year.
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  SPEAKER_00: Another element of the revised CBI Act was the decision to establish the St.
• 3:07
  SPEAKER_00: Keats and Nevis Citizenship by Investment Unit as a separate corporate entity.
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  SPEAKER_00: Until now, the CIU has been a department within the Ministry of National Security, Immigration and Citizenship, the financial oversight of which has rested with the Prime Minister's office.
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  SPEAKER_00: Citing glaring instances of mismanagement of the CBI program under the former administration, PM Drew emphasized the importance of making the CIU an independent statutory corporation.
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  SPEAKER_00: Going forward as a corporation in its own right, the CIU will have perpetual succession and a common seal and will also be able to sue or be sued in its corporate name.
• 3:54
  SPEAKER_00: The establishment of the CIU as a separate entity had been among the Financial Action Task Force recommendations from a report last year.
• 4:04
  SPEAKER_00: This episode first appeared as an article by Christian Henrik Nessim on IMIDaily.com.
• 4:11
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• 4:18
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