KRyS Global, a boutique fraud investigation and asset recovery firm, has partnered with AssetMine Global Inc to reunite Bahamian residents and companies with their unclaimed property located in jurisdictions around the world outside of The Bahamas.

Unclaimed property is the term given to financial assets that have not been collected by their owners after a legally defined period of time.

These assets could be in the form of dormant bank accounts, tax refunds, uncashed checks, insurance or pension policies, stocks or brokerage accounts, and inheritances, among others.

“We have begun our first phase of contacting those who we believe to be owners of unclaimed assets that have been identified by AssetMine. Our team uses a multi-stage research process into publicly available databases across the world, which include cross-references at every step to eliminate non-owners. We are contacting only those whom we consider likely to be the rightful or legal asset owner,” says Edmund Rahming (left), managing director of KRyS Global’s Bahamas office.

Governments frequently report these claims as having a “not stated” values, so the total amount of unclaimed assets belonging to Bahamas residents is currently unknown, but AssetMine’s team has evidence the figures are growing.

“The unclaimed assets that have a known value for Bahamas residents and companies are in the millions of US dollars,” says Darren Jack (left) of AssetMine and chairman of a task force for the Unclaimed Property Professionals Organization.

“Our experience in other countries indicates that a significant number of these unclaimed assets could have significant value.”

Amounts that have not been disclosed remain hidden until the legal owner has initiated a claim due to the regulations of the state or country that it is being held in. These amounts can only be confirmed when the claims process has begun.

“We are excited about this initiative and the value it can bring to Bahamian residents, companies and the government,” says Rahming. “We are assisting clients in locating assets that in most cases they never knew existed.”

Assets can go missing for a number of reasons: change of address or lost mail; incorrect spelling of contact information being recorded; wills not being left or beneficiary details not being up to date; or checks not being deposited into the owner’s account.