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Securities Council does not have direct access to crucial info from banks…denied membership to key transparency body
By Kiana Wilburg
Chairman of the Guyana
Securities Council, Rawle Lucas
The Guyana’s Securities Exchange Council is a key agent in monitoring the financial market. One of its main responsibilities is to ensure that the economy is protected from anti-money laundering activities. But the Council is unable to effectively fulfill its mandate if it does not have direct access to crucial information from banks. Because of this, it was denied membership to a key transparency body, The International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO).
This was noted in the Council’s 2017 Annual Report. In that document, it was noted that the Council had applied since September 2005
to become a member of the body. The Council noted that the IOSCO Multilateral Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation and Consultation and the Exchange of Information (the MMoU), provides a global framework for enforcement co-operation between securities regulators.
It explained that the MMoU therefore helps to ensure effective global regulation as well as the preservation of the strength of securities markets. The Council said that it is a critical IOSCO work-stream, and is rightly regarded as the benchmark for international cooperation in enforcement matters.
The Council also listed the main impediments preventing Guyana from becoming a signatory to the MMoU.
It said, “The Council does not have direct access to bank records, depending on the Bank of Guyana to obtain this information when a bank is not a market participant or a reporting issuer. Additionally, Guyana’s legislation is not specific with respect to how to acquire information from banks.
“The Bank of Guyana is limited by law in sharing of information; the Council depends on the Minister of Finance or any lawful order of Court for obtaining banking information.”
Currently, becoming an ordinary IOSCO member is conditional upon signing the MMoU, a prerequisite of which is the ability to obtain, and disclose to other regulators, certain specific information that may be critical to enforcement cases.
IOSCO has noted that very often, acquiring that ability may require significant legislative change within an applicant’s jurisdiction.
The MMoU envisages that signatories will provide to each other comprehensive assistance in the investigation and prosecution of securities-related crime and misconduct.
The Council said that in increasingly globalised markets, the ability to obtain information and exchange it with overseas counterparts, as facilitated by the MMoU, is critical to Regulators’ success in this field.
It pointed out that MMoU signatories, and the markets to which they belong, benefit from international recognition in that they adhere to robust standards in the investigation of cross-border crime, and that they are participants in a global enforcement regime, which contributes to maintaining fair and efficient markets.
The Council said that that recognition may inform the perceptions of international organisations involved in global regulation.
It said for example, that the Financial Stability Board and other standard-setters use the MMoU as a benchmark when conducting their own assessments.
Moreover, the Council stressed that whether or not a jurisdiction is a signatory to the MMoU, it may influence the perceptions of international investors as to market credibility.
There are now 91 signatories to the MMoU, representing approximately 94% of the world’s securities markets. IOSCO is determined to ensuring global coverage is therefore becoming essential for all regulators to sign the MMoU, not only to ensure effective international enforcement, but for their reputation and the economic health of the jurisdictions to which they belong.
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