Nassau, Bahamas
Intelligence·Jurisdictions

Bahamas

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Nassau

Bahamas

Independent country in the western Atlantic, an archipelago running southeast from Florida, operating a common law system with final appeal to the Privy Council. Financial services sits alongside tourism as one of the two pillars of the economy.

Long-established private banking and wealth structuring underpin the fund business, which runs under a securities regulator rather than a central bank. Proximity to the United States shapes both the client base and the working day.

Regulators

Securities Commission of The Bahamas
SCB·National regulator · The Bahamas·Nassau
Regulates and oversees investment funds, securities, capital markets, financial and corporate service providers, digital assets and registered exchanges, and carbon credit trading. Established in 1995. Banking supervision sits with the Central Bank of The Bahamas rather than here.

scb.gov.bs

Fund structures

Last verified 28 August 2026
SMART fund
Specific Mandate Alternative Regulatory Test, and the islands' signature route. Rather than one set of rules for every fund, the regulator approves templates matched to a defined risk profile, and a fund adopting a model takes the treatment that comes with it. Seven models exist, SFM 001 to 007, added in stages since 2003.
Family officeEmerging managersHedge
SMART Fund Rules

Key links

Selected by us, not exhaustive. Tell us what is missing.

This is not legal, tax or regulatory advice. Please read the full notice at the foot of this page.

Regulatory fields last checked 2026-08-28 · provider and event counts derived from the directoryReport a change
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