Parent Holding Companies

Published: Thursday December 4th, 2025

Public Notice

Parent Holding Companies

In an effort to further strengthen the Central Bank of The Bahamas’ (the Central Bank) oversight of all Supervised Financial Institutions (SFIs) that are not subject to consolidated supervision, the Central Bank will be introducing reporting measures that support the supervisory assessment of the governance and reporting risks parent holding companies may pose to the continued stability of SFIs or the broader financial system.

With effect 1 January 2026, the Central Bank advises that all SFIs, who are not subject to consolidated supervision by a foreign regulator, will be required to file a notarised Annual Statement or Declaration confirming names of the Board of Directors of the Parent Holding Company (PHC). SFIs are required to file this document each year on or before 31 December of the reporting year. In the event of a change in the composition of the Board of Directors intra year, such change must be notified to the Central Bank immediately, but not later than seven (7) business days following the change.

Additionally, the Central Bank must be pre-notified of any financial investments or loans held by the PHC and/or its Shareholders that could potentially expose the SFIs to undue risk or encumber its shares. Accordingly, exposure in this regard, refers to the value of any financial investment or loan that is equal to or above ten percent of a SFIs capital base.

This requirement is being implemented pursuant to section 38(2) of the Central Bank of The Bahamas Act, 2020 and in accordance with section 28(1)(f) of the Banks and Trust Companies Regulation Act, 2020.

SFIs failing to comply with this requirement will be subject to a penalty prescribed by the relevant legislative provisions.

Comments or questions regarding this Notice should be directed to:

Authorization and Administration Unit
Bank Supervision Department
E-mail: [email protected]