The Cayman Islands is a strong partner in combatting global financial crime. The jurisdiction has implemented the highest global standards for transparency and cross-border co-operation which are regularly reviewed and enhanced.
The Cayman Islands is a strong partner in combatting global financial crime. The jurisdiction has implemented the highest global standards for transparency and cross-border co-operation which are regularly reviewed and enhanced.
In 2017, the Cayman Islands passed legislation to establish a centralised platform for beneficial ownership information. The legislation requires companies, limited liability partnerships (“LLPs”) and limited liability companies (“LLCs”) to engage a corporate services provider to assist them establish and maintain a beneficial ownership register. Companies, LLPs, LLCs and other persons may be subject to fines and imprisonment for breaching the laws relating to establishing and maintaining beneficial ownership registers.
An administrative fines regime has been introduced with a breach in beneficial ownership obligations incurring a CI$5,000 fine, with a further CI$1,000 penalty every month until the issue is rectified. Where there is non-payment for 90 days, the Registrar has powers to strike the company off the register.
Only the competent authority is able to search the beneficial ownership registers for information. It is only able to search for such information upon receipt of a lawful request by the specified Cayman Islands or UK law enforcement authorities set out in law.
The UK Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act (2018) required the UK Government to draft an order by the end of 2020 requiring British Overseas Territories to create a publicly accessible beneficial ownership register. In July 2020 the UK Government announced that in light of the firm commitments from the Cayman Islands and other overseas territories to adopt publicly accessible registers, it had decided that it was no longer necessary to make the order.
The UK is spearheading an international campaign to encourage more countries to commit to publicly accessible registers by 2023. It believes that action on beneficial ownership information in the overseas territories should be complemented by improved public access to beneficial ownership information internationally. The Cayman Islands Government has been clear that it will not consider the introduction of a public register of beneficial ownership unless and until that becomes the accepted and implemented international standard.