Suspect Wealth – A Risk to Stability, Development and Sustainability: The case of Bermuda, the Turks and Caicos Islands, and Anguilla

• Main Author: Thomas-James, Dominic William Rupert
• Format: Doctoral or Postdoctoral Thesis
• Language: English
• Published: Queens' College 2019
• Subjects: British Overseas Territory; Bermuda; The Turks and Caicos Islands; Anguilla; Suspect Wealth; Development; International Development; Money Laundering; Anti-Money Laundering; AML; Corruption; Bribery; Anti-Bribery; Tax; Beneficial Ownership; Beneficial Ownership Information; Transparency; International Cooperation; Offshore Financial Centre; Offshore Financial Centres; Tax Havens; International Financial Centres; Confidentiality; Privacy; Secrecy; Counter-Terrorism Financing; Compliance; Integrity; Development Studies; Rule of Law; Fraud; White-Collar Crime; Finance; Financial Market Regulation; Financial Market Integrity; Legal Development; Institutional Development; Financial Crime; Economic Crime; Panama papers; Paradise papers; Constitutional law; Company law; Crown Dependencies; Market Abuse; Offshore companies; Mutual Legal Assistance; Transnational Economic Crime; Tax Evasion; Tax Avoidance; North Atlantic
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.17863/CAM.40530; https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/handle/1810/293378

In the global financial architecture, British Overseas Territories in the Caribbean and North Atlantic are of material significance. Post-colonialism, these relatively homogeneous, archipelagic territories with financial centres have been the recipients of soft-domination by metropolitan interests. Through their inalienable right to self-determination and pursuit of autonomous governance and financial independence, many developed offshore financial centres to achieve sustainable development, with UK encouragement. Recently, and exacerbated by the Panama and Paradise papers, these jurisdictions are subject to increased pressure and ongoing perception that their financial centres facilitate criminality by harbouring suspect wealth, due to lack of transparency. This doctoral thesis concerns suspect wealth as a product of economic misconduct like corruption, money laundering, tax evasion, fraud, and the increasingly controversial tax avoidance. It concerns suspect wealth derived from overseas or domestic misconduct, given law enforcement’s response is typically the same irrespective of origin. It focuses on three Overseas Territories: Bermuda, the Turks and Caicos Islands, and Anguilla. Through secondary research into their legal, regulatory and compliance regimes, it sets out to answer three main questions: How viable are international standards on suspect wealth in the context of these three jurisdictions? How willing and able are these jurisdictions to comply with international standards on suspect wealth? And, how can they better prevent their financial centres accepting suspect wealth? Given these standards are envisaged at international levels, the dissertation also considers whether a one-size-fits-all approach to the territories is appropriate. Proceeding on the basis that receipt of suspect wealth is inimical to development, it also discusses its impact on development for both countries from which wealth transits, as well as the overseas territories themselves, many having fundamental development concerns. ...