Source: Date: Updated: |
TheBahamasInvestor.com
Wednesday, November 7, 2012 Wednesday, November 7, 2012 |
Accountants are on the frontline of ensuring The Bahamas maintains its edge in an increasingly regulated global economy, according to Minister of Financial Services Ryan Pinder, who today urged members of the profession to be in a “constant state of education and keep appraised of the international landscape.”
Speaking on the second day of Accountants’ Week 2012, Minister Pinder discussed the concept of mitigating risk and how enhanced compliance regulations would impact the industry.
“As more and more requirements are imposed on private industry, best practices evolve,” he said. “There are a lot of risks to business out there today. We must all be nimble to react to a changing business environment.”
“We must be able to develop a strategy that puts us as a jurisdiction in a position not only to survive in these turbulent times, but to thrive in these turbulent times.”
The Minister said accountants will play a “crucial role” in the success of The Bahamas as a jurisdiction, as new regulations such as the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act and legislation requiring International Business Corporations to maintain records for a certain period of time come into force.
He encouraged the sector to scrutinize itself and put in place effective means of self-regulation, saying: “It is very important that the accounting profession gets serious, and remains serious, about its peer review initiatives [and] its ability to regulate itself to the highest standards in the world. It will be the only way that the industry will survive.”
In addition, the Minister stressed that all insitutions in the financial services sector should recognize the value of effective corporate governance and advised that accountants be more active in this area.
“The integrity of business and the integrity of economies are based on the effectiveness of corporate governance procedures. It is an area you can branch out into,” he told the audience.
The Bahamas Institute of Chartered Accountants’ Accountants’ Week runs until the end of the week and takes place at the Sheraton Nassau Beach Hotel.
cmorris@dupuch.com