Bmda: Plugging the holes in the financial dike

Insider traders and market abusers could be jailed for up to two years after Government moved to tighten up laws regulating white collar crime.

On Friday Finance Minister Paula Cox tabled legislation in the House of Assembly to empowering the courts to convict those found guilty of insider dealing and market abuse in the securities industry.

The legislation was drafted after a KPMG review of Bermuda’s financial regulations found weaknesses in the law.

Although some jurisdictions – in a bid to crack down on these kinds of abuses, which were said to be difficult to successfully convict – have added civil law offences to the standard criminal ones, Ms Cox said the intent in Bermuda for the time being was to limit this to the introduction of criminal offences.

But civil law offences could be introduced if serious concerns are raised in future over the effectiveness of criminal sanctions, Ms Cox said in a Press statement on Friday.

“This is an important area of weakness in the framework of Bermuda’s investment and securities legislation,” she said.

The new legislation amends the Criminal Code 1907.

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