According to the Monetary Authority (Amendment)(No. 2), Bill, 2023 and a Consultation Paper issued by the Ministry for Financial Services, it is proposed that the Monetary Authority Act (2020 Revision) be amended to allow the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA) to “provide, for a fee, regulatory and compliance training to regulated persons or entities” and “set and collect fees for the provision of training.”
As explained by the May 2023 Consultation Paper, the purpose of the draft consultation Bill is to allow CIMA to offer standardized “regulatory training across the various regulated sectors” via a training portal to be created by CIMA.
The May 2023 Consultation Paper added that CIMA’s offering of training to regulated entities and individuals will “enable CIMA to more effectively discharge its mandates.”
Such mandates are “to 1) promote and maintain a sound financial system in the Islands; 2) use its resources in the most efficient and economical way; and 3) endeavour to reduce the possibility of financial services business or relevant financial business being used for the purpose of money laundering or other crime.”
The proposed fees for the regulatory training (according to the draft consultation Bill) are up to $1,200 per person, with lower prices per user depending on the number of users registered on the CIMA portal.
Before implementing these changes, the May 2023 Consultation Paper said that the Ministry for Financial Services would like feedback from Cayman stakeholders by a tight deadline of May 30, 2023.
Concerning the feedback, the Ministry is said to have circulated a response template, which should be emailed to [email protected].
While financial industry players seem happy to provide this feedback, the Ministry’s request has also unexpectedly created a quandary for service providers who currently offer regulatory training to industry professionals.
The issue, as explained by one senior service provider, is that the proposals by CIMA to charge fees for regulatory training may result in CIMA being in “direct competition with private service providers,” some of which are regulated by CIMA.
Given the significance of the concern, it could be the case that the Ministry will consider extending the consultation period to allow further industry discussion and feedback.
