British Virgin Islands to probe Taib-linked firms

The British Virgin Islands (BVI) is investigating allegations that a number of its registered companies allegedly linked to Sarawak Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud's family are involved in money laundering.

BVI's Financial Services Commission, in an email to Malaysiakini, said that the allegations reported by an online website, "pose serious reputational risk" to the territory as an offshore financial centre.

"The commission in its efforts to protect the reputation of the British Virgin Islands as a premier and reputable financial centre, undertakes investigations into all complaints and allegations of BVI companies being linked or involved in any nefarious activities," said Dwayne Thomas, the enforcement officer of the commission's legal and enforcement division.

Thomas has asked for assistance in identifying the allegedly errant off-shore companies so that a probe can be launched into their activities.

One of the major tasks of the Financial Services Commission in BVI - a British territory in the Caribbean - is to "detect financial crime and assist in the prosecution of such crime". It is empowered to revoke licences of off-shore companies registered in the territory.

 In an immediate response, Switzerland-based NGO Bruno Manser Fund (BMF) had yesterday provided the BVI authorities a list 10 off-shore companies linked to the Taib family.

Lukas Straumann, head of BMF, said that his organisation will "actively cooperate with the BVI investigators on this important matter of international concern".

"The British Virgin Islands' under-regulated offshore financial services and secrecy provisions have been used by the Taibs to launder millions of dollars of illicit funds in order to reinvest them in the property sector in Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom," said Straumann.

"We are calling on the BVI authorities to freeze all Taib family's assets and to inform the public on the outcome of its investigations."

Straumann also urged Malaysian prosecutors - in particular the attorney-general and the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) - to follow BVI's example in taking action on the matter.

"A registered letter, which we sent in December 2011 and was signed by 15 NGOs from eight countries calling on Malaysia's authorities to arrest Taib and 13 family members, has been left unanswered," he lamented.

Rewcastle impressed by BVI's response

Meanwhile, Sarawak Report founder Clare Rewcastle said she was impressed by BVI's Financial Services Commission in voluntarily coming forward to request for further information.

"Our researches have shown that Taib companies and Taib family interests have had investments lodged in BVI, along with a number of other tax havens. These investments include a trust fund for CMS (Cahya Mata Sarawak)!

"There is also a BVI-based company that owns the Taib family property empire in London and another BVI company at the same address that has been providing interest-free loans to buy those properties."

She suggested BVI investigators to take into consideration that Taib Mahmud had acquired the assets through CMS - the Sarawak-based conglomerate controlled by Taib's family - by abusing "his political power at the expense of the people he is supposed to represent".

"However, the corruption extends far beyond the acquisition of CMS into a whole network of kickbacks, self-interested contracts and concessions and illegal appropriations of land, as we have frequently detailed on Sarawak Report," she said.

Last month, BMF released a list of 49 companies located across four continents, including three in the British Virgin Islands, said to be linked to Taib's family.

The list includes 13 companies in Malaysia, 10 in Australia, nine in Canada, seven in Hong Kong, four in the United States, one on the island of Jersey and two in the United Kingdom.

The NGO called on the authorities in these countries to freeze Taib's "illegal assets".