BERMUDA Trends and Developments Contributed by: John Wasty, Claire van Overdijk, Sam Riihiluoma, James Batten and Jordan Knight, Appleby
practitioners in navigating the Authority’s enforcement framework in the future, not only with respect to DABA but also across other regulated sectors. In addition to court proceedings, the Authority has been generally active in enforcement across multiple sectors, including: • prohibition orders against individuals; • winding-up petitions concerning investment funds; • substantial civil penalties; and • cancellations and revocations of licenses in rela- tion to insurance companies and corporate service companies for breaches of governance/pruden- tial requirements and issues concerning capital requirements. On the Proceeds of Crime (POCA) front, amendments to the legislation have been passed that update the legislative framework, enhancing both: • the scope of suspicious activity reporting; and • the supervisory tools available to the regulator. Early drafts of the proposed legislative amendments suggested that appeals of Authority enforcement decisions concerning POCA would be heard in the Bermuda Supreme Court, rather than the Proceeds of Crime Appeals Tribunal; however, those proposals were not pursued and appeals remain governed by the statutory tribunal process. Bermuda’s Corporate Income Tax Act 2023 (CITA) regime became effective in January 2025. Although there have not been any significant disputes regarding its implementation so far, we are closely monitoring the situation and collaborating with clients. Initial chal- lenges, often experienced with new tax and regulatory regimes, are to be expected.
Generally, regulators in Bermuda have been very active and activity levels, especially with respect to enforcement action, are trending upwards. Bermuda is a jurisdiction that takes its international reputation very seriously and, as the regulatory environment con- tinues to evolve (eg, with the implementation of new regimes like CITA), regulators will likely exercise close scrutiny to ensure entities comply with their respective obligations. The level of scrutiny Bermuda entities will face in the near future is likely to increase in any event with the upcoming Financial Action Task Force (FATF) mutual evaluation of Bermuda, due to commence in Octo- ber 2026. FATF evaluations test how well Bermuda is implementing the FATF’s updated standards on mon- ey laundering and financial crime. In practice, spikes in regulatory activity have been seen in the months prior to such assessments, and it is expected that this trend will continue in the coming 12 months. Summary • The Bermuda Courts have been active, providing helpful guidance on DABA-related issues and adju- dicating other enforcement-related matters. • The new CITA regime and updates to the POCA legislative framework demonstrate Bermuda’s commitment to enhancing the regulatory environ- ment. • Regulatory enforcement actions and related litiga- tion are expected to continue the upward trend seen in practice over the past three to five years.
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