Sanctions

Overview

Sanctions in the TCI

Sanctions in the TCI flow from those imposed mainly by the UN and the EU. These Sanctions Orders are enacted domestically to give them the force of law in the TCI and are published in the TCI Gazette.

TCI competent authority

The Governor is the competent authority in the TCI for the implementation of targeted financial sanctions. The Governor has delegated some of the functions for financial sanctions to the Attorney General’s Chambers (AGC). The AGC’s informative website on financial sanctions can be found here.

United Nations (UN)

The UN imposes general measures regarding terrorism and, more specifically, against named persons, groups, undertakings, and entities. These enforcement measures are imposed to combat international terrorism and threats to international peace and security. The sanctions impose a range of mechanisms including asset freezes and other prohibitions on funds owned, held, or controlled by certain named persons, groups, undertakings and entities.

It is a criminal offence to breach these requirements. The UN has also imposed sanctions against specified countries and/or government officials of certain countries. Any person or entity considering entering into any form of financial or other type of business relationship which is in any way linked to countries or subjects referred to in

UN sanctions regimes, must exercise great caution and closely consider the details contained within the various sanctions lists, and any associated local enactments, which have been extended to the TCI.

Many of the sanctions expressly prohibit the provision of financial services to the named individuals or entities, ie targeted financial sanctions. It is important for the TCI’s financial services industry to take appropriate measures to comply with these enactments.

The UN Sanctions Committee lists can be found here and include sanctions by region. The UN Sanctions Committee lists specifically relating to ISIL (Da’esh), Al-Qaida et al can be found here.

United Kingdom (UK)

The UK Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) manages the UK’s financial sanctions regime. Its website is available here and its consolidated list of targets found here.

Commission Sanctions Notices

The TCI’s Financial Services Commission (FSC) is a conduit for formal sanctions notices sent by the AGC. These formal notices are titled Financial Sanctions Notices, or FSNs and carry a specific number and year.

Through its AML News Alerts, the Commission advises and reminds its supervised and regulated entities of their obligations to comply with the relevant Sanctions Orders, requirements of the AML/PTF Regulations 2010 (as amended), and the AML/PTF Code 2011 (as amended), both found here.

The Commission’s e-Alert reminds the reader to apply measures to the entries (ie entities and individuals) referenced in the FSN. In summary, the reader must:

• Check whether they maintain any account or hold any funds or economic resources for entries listed on the AGC FSN.
• Freeze such accounts and other funds or economic resources.
• Refrain from dealing with the funds or assets, or from making them available (directly or indirectly), to the entries listed on the AGC FSN, unless approved by the Governor.
• Report any findings to the Governor, with any additional information, that would facilitate compliance with the Regulation.
• Provide any information concerning the frozen assets of the entries listed on the AGC FSN that the Governor may request.
• Note that information reported to the Governor may be passed on to other regulatory authorities or law enforcement.
• Continue to inform the Commission if they have any dealings with the entries and provide information on the measures applied to them.

Accessing Financial Sanction Notices

All FSNs issued by the AGC are forwarded by the Commission via its group email aml_supervision@tcifsc.tc. If you would like to receive these notices, please send an email to the address stated above. All FSNs issued by the AGC are posted on the AGC’s website within 24 hours of dissemination to the industry.

To access the latest FSN, please click here website.

AGC Guidance on Financial Sanctions

The AGC has published a Guidance paper on Financial Sanctions. It can be found here.