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Bahamas businessmen accused of money laundering

June 30, 1999
Bahamian businessman George J. Wilson, who is accused of money laundering and other serious offences in the US, was released from prison on March 11 and is not allowed to leave the US pending the outcome of his trial in Texas. His co-defendant in the criminal action, Bahamas attorney Norwood Rolle, is in the Bahamas and is considered to be a fugitive by the US authorities.

Eurofed’s name taken off Canadian regulator’s warning list

June 30, 1999
Antigua-licensed Eurofed Bank has been taken off a Warning Circular issued on April 15, 1999 by the Canadian Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions. The list contains the names of 227 entities against which the OFSI has had "some form of inquiry or complaint" and which may be operating illegally in Canada.

Euro Bank goes into voluntary liquidation

June 30, 1999
Cayman Islands-based Euro Bank Corporation this month officially went into voluntary liquidation, as we revealed it would in the May edition of Offshore Alert. Additionally, two members of its management, Ivan Burges and Judi Donegan, were arrested by Cayman police but released without charge, according to sources.  

Fidelity fund group biggest investor in Bermuda insurance market

June 30, 1999
The Boston-based Fidelity Management and Research group is the broadest investor in the Bermuda insurance market, XL Capital has the oldest directors and the directors of Stirling Cooke Brown Holdings are not only the youngest - with an average of just 40 - but also the fewest in number. Directors and officers of Stirling Cooke also own more of their company than for any other firm. These are some of the results of a comprehensive survey of the ownership and governance of Bermuda-based, publicly-listed insurance entities by Miami-based Offshore Business News & Research Inc., which publishes this newsletter.

Liquidators of Telecheck group prepare to pay final dividend

June 30, 1999
The liquidators of Televest Ltd. and Telecheck Holdings Ltd., which went bust on December 15, 1993, have announced they will soon pay a final dividend to creditors. Although accounting firm Kempe and Whittle have no amount for the dividend, creditors have been told in the past to expect a total payment of between 21 and 37 cents on the dollars.

Worldwide International Bank goes into receivership

June 30, 1999
Antigua-licensed Worldwide International Bank has officially been placed into receivership after the failure of a last-ditch bid to stop the process by the bank's owner, Antiguan Joan De Nully.

Insider Talking: June 30, 1999

June 30, 1999
As I flew out of Bermuda on June 10 after narrowly surviving an attempt by Donald Lines' attorney, Robin Potts, to have me put in prison for contempt of court for refusing to reveal my sources in relation to articles I wrote about Bermuda Fire & Marine Insurance, who should I bump into on the flight to Atlanta but one of Donald's sons, Brian Lines, who is the President of Lines Overseas Management, which has been on the receiving end of several unflattering articles in this newsletter; Some of the UK's leading attorneys have made Bermuda their home for the next several months as they work on two of the biggest civil trials in the island's history: The Bermuda Fire & Marine Insurance Company case and a trust dispute involving the Thyssen-Bornemisza family, which has a $2.7 billion fortune; What was it like sitting in front of Britain's finest while they debated for two days whether to lock me up for seven days for contempt of court? Not much fun, I can tell you; The lengths that crooks will go to in order to lend credibility to their scams knows no shame; and Beleaguered Stirling Cooke Brown Holdings Ltd. is laying off staff in Bermuda and is in the process of moving its Bermuda-based broking activities to London, we have been told.

OBNR publisher almost imprisoned for refusing to reveal sources for stories

June 30, 1999
For those who are not already aware from other media outlets, David Marchant, the publisher of this newsletter, came close to being imprisoned in Bermuda this month for refusing to reveal his sources for articles he had written about Bermuda Fire & Marine Insurance Company. Marchant was giving evidence during what is probably Bermuda's biggest ever civil trial in which some of the island's most prominent businessmen and companies are accused of defrauding creditors of BFMIC (in liquidation) of more than $50 million of assets.

Stirling Cooke Brown lays off Bermuda staff

June 30, 1999
Beleaguered Stirling Cooke Brown Holdings Ltd. is laying off staff in Bermuda and is in the process of moving its Bermuda-based broking activities to London, Inside Bermuda has been told. The move comes after Goldman Sachs, which is the biggest single shareholder in Stirling Cooke, told management that it was taking more control of the company, said a source.

Brian O’Hara tops Bermuda shareholders’ list with $65 million of XL Capital stock

June 30, 1999
XL Capital President and CEO Brian O'Hara has topped a list that measures the value of shares that officers of Bermuda-based, publicly-listed insurers own in their own company. O'Hara is the beneficial owner of shares worth approximately $64.6 million in XL Capital, according to a review conducted by Miami-based Offshore Business News & Research, Inc., which publishes this newsletter.

Decision expected soon in Ann Nealon/Cayman Stock Exchange dispute

June 30, 1999
A decision in the bitter legal dispute between the Cayman Islands Stock Exchange and its former CEO, Ann Nealon, is expected soon after the case was heard over June 28-29 before Chief Justice Anthony Smellie at the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands. The ruling is being eagerly awaited in both Cayman and overseas, where the decision by the government-funded CSX to bring a civil lawsuit against Nealon has raised many eyebrows.

First lawsuit filed against First International Bank of Grenada

June 30, 1999
The First International Bank of Grenada appears to be on the verge of collapse. A client filed a lawsuit against the bank this month alleging non-payment of a $300,000 one-month Certificate of Deposit and we understand that several other depositors are preparing similar lawsuits.

Harris Organization/OffshoreAlert trial set to start on July 6, 1999

June 30, 1999
The civil libel trial between Offshore Business News & Research, Inc., which publishes this newsletter, and The Harris Organization financial services group of Panama will start at the United States District Court for the District of Southern Florida (in Miami) on July 6. After two postponements by the court because of scheduling problems, a definite date has now been set for the trial, which is scheduled to last for about one week.

Stirling Cooke latest: Director resigns, new unpaid claim goes to arbitration

May 31, 1999
May was another bad month for Stirling Cooke Brown Holdings, which suffered the resignation of a director, announced that it had become involved in yet another arbitration in London and reported that quarterly earnings were down by 11 per cent and that projected annual net income for fiscal 1999 is 25 per cent less than in 1998. The resignation of director Warren Cabral, effective May 13, came a month after the company's auditor, KPMG Peat Marwick, resigned.

James Stanard tops insurance compensation package chart for 1998

May 31, 1999
RenaissanceRe's President and CEO, James Stanard, was the best compensated officer of a Bermuda-based, publicly-listed insurance entity for the second consecutive year in fiscal 1998, according to a compensation review by Miami-based Offshore Business News & Research, Inc., which publishes this newsletter.

Ann Nealon resigns from Cayman Stock Exchange

May 31, 1999
Ann Nealon has resigned after two years as CEO of the Cayman Islands Stock Exchange. We understand that Nealon, who is an attorney by profession, has been offered a job with the Cayman law firm of W. S. Walker & Co.

World Stock Exchange closed down by Cayman police

May 31, 1999
A Cayman-based Internet stock exchange was closed down last year by the local police and government because of concerns that it might be confused with the Cayman Islands Stock Exchange. Details about the action appeared in a complaint prepared by the Alberta Securities Commission against Canadians Kim Seto and Orest Rusnak.

First International Bank of Grenada launches Pyramid scheme

May 31, 1999
The First International Bank of Grenada and the sham insurer known as IDIC have launched an international pyramid scheme as the latest phase of their plan to part investors from their money. There is also concern that FIBG may have become involved in stock manipulation involving a Florida-registered penny stock firm that trades on the NASDAQ over-the-counter market.

Euro Bank to go into voluntary liquidation

May 31, 1999
Cayman-registered Euro Bank Corporation is to go into voluntary liquidation following a report into its affairs by Ian Wight and Michael Pilling, of Deloitte & Touche, OffshoreAlert can reveal. The accountants were appointed as controllers of the bank by the Cayman government on May 11 following concerns that it may be involved in illegal activities.

Peter Crisson accused of Internet libel against Colombian Emeralds boss

May 31, 1999
Stephen Crane, the head of Bahamas-based jewellery group Colombian Emeralds International, has brought a libel action against two Bermudians accused of posting defamatory messages about him on the Internet. Bermuda Supreme Court has already issued an Anton Piller Order that allowed representatives of Crane to search the homes of Peter Crisson and Larry Booker and jeweller H. S. & J. E. Crisson, which Crisson heads and where Booker works.

SG Hambros sues Coutts over Bahamas purchase

May 31, 1999
SG Hambros filed a lawsuit in March in the High Court in London against Coutts private banking group in relation to the former's purchase of Coutts (Bahamas) for $100 million in August, 1998.

Offshore banker William Cooper arrested in Antigua

May 31, 1999
Antigua continued its battle to clean up the image of its offshore financial services sector this month with the arrest of a notorious banker and an attempt to force another suspect bank into receivership. American-born William W. Cooper, aged 59, was arrested in Antigua on May 18 after a warrant was issued against him in the United States, where he has been criminally indicted for alleged money laundering and fraud.

Bermuda Fire & Marine Insurance trial hears accusations of fraud

May 31, 1999
The Bermuda Fire & Marine Insurance trial began, as scheduled, on May 4 and most of the rest of the month was spent hearing allegations of lies, deceit and fraud against people who were at one time considered to be among the crème de la crème of the local business community.

Antigua advisor attacks US Advisory against island’s offshore industry

May 31, 1999
One of the architects of Antigua's new anti-money laundering laws has written to the US Treasury protesting its recent issuance of an Advisory warning that all transactions with Antiguan financial institutions should be treated as suspicious. US-based attorney Carlos E. Loumiet conceded that there were "a few shortcomings" in Antigua's new legislation but he claimed the US had ignored the "numerous positive changes in bank supervision in Antigua and Barbuda over the past two years designed to clean up the offshore banking sector in that country".

Harris Organization-OBNR trial put back by court

May 31, 1999
The libel trial involving The Harris Organization financial services group of Panama and Offshore Business News & Research, Inc., which publishes this newsletter, has been put back to an unnamed date by the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida.

Red faces all around as Absolute Offshore conference is called off

May 31, 1999
There were plenty of red faces this month after an offshore exhibition and conference planned for Amsterdam was called off at the eleventh hour, apparently because only eight people had signed up for it. Registrations for the Absolute Offshore International Finance Convention were being handled by EMAP Promotions, which is one of the UK's leading conference firms.

Overseas Partners facing victory against the IRS

May 31, 1999
Overseas Partners Ltd. appears to have won its battle with the US Internal Revenue Service over tax assessments and penalties totalling $539 million that were levied against the firm for the period 1984-90. On January 21, 1999, a US Tax Court ruled that OPL had no deficiency in income tax, and no additional tax was due from the company, for 1984, the only year that has so far gone to trial.

Insider Talking: May 31, 1999

May 31, 1999
Offshore promoter Adam Starchild's criminal past, Cayman politicians receive huge pay increases, clients of Marc Harris' Threshold Insurance Services claim to have been ripped off.

David Brown and Grant Gibbons walk away from Gemini Re

May 5, 1999
Former Centre Solutions boss David Brown and Grant Gibbons, Bermuda's former Minister of Finance, are no longer part of Gemini Re Holdings, OffshoreAlert can reveal. Brown was the President and CEO of the proposed reinsurer, while Gibbons was the Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer.

Rudolph Linschoten arrested in Florida

April 30, 1999
A businessman who is alleged to have defrauded about 170 investors out of more than $6 million through a high-yield investment scheme is in custody after being arrested this month in Florida. The FBI picked up Rudolph Linschoten, who also goes by the name Rudolph Van Lin, in Fort Lauderdale on April 18.

Star Capital Fund investor criticizes Cayman Islands Monetary Authority

April 30, 1999
A Canadian investor in the failed Star Capital Fund has criticized regulators in the Cayman Islands over their lack of interest in investigating apparent illegalities in the operation and liquidation of the mutual fund. Alan Hammaker, who lost US$20,000 in the fund, said his experience as a foreign investor in a Cayman mutual fund has left him disillusioned not only with the island but with the offshore world in general.

Attorneys arrive for Bermuda Fire & Marine Insurance trial

April 30, 1999
Some of the UK's top attorneys began arriving in Bermuda this month to prepare for the island's biggest ever civil trial, involving the alleged asset-stripping of the failed Bermuda Fire & Marine Insurance Company by some of the island's most prominent businessmen and companies. The trial, which is due to start on May 4, is expected to last four months and there have been no indications in the run-up to the off that the case will be settled.

SEC brings action against CBT Holding Corp. and principals

April 30, 1999
The Securities & Exchange Commission this month brought two separate actions against US businessmen accused of operating a fraudulent investment offering involving a Nevis company. At least 148 people invested a total of $6.4 million to buy what they were told were Certificates of Deposit bearing annual interest of 12 per cent, claimed the SEC.

SEC freezes assets of ‘New Utopia’

April 30, 1999
A scheme to build a new offshore tax haven called New Utopia off the coast of the Cayman Islands has collapsed following legal action by the Securities & Exchange Commission. A federal judge in Tulsa, Oklahoma, this month granted the SEC's application to freeze all money raised by Lazarus Long (a.k.a. Howard Turney) for his New Utopia project through a fraudulent bond offering.

Plans to form Global Markets Access reinsurer are shelved

April 30, 1999
Plans to operate a new reinsurance company in Bermuda called Global Markets Access have been shelved. The company's organizers, who included several people involved in the successful launch last year of Annuity & Life Re, could not raise enough start-up capital, even though the original target was lowered from $350 million to $200 million last month.

Grenada asks FBI to investigate offshore bank

April 30, 1999
Grenada began to come to grips this month with a financial scandal that is threatening to make the island the laughing stock of the offshore world. Three months after Offshore Alert exposed it as a fraud, the First International Bank of Grenada appears to be on the verge of being closed down by the local government.

John McGarrity disappears amid fraud investigations

April 30, 1999
Former Bermuda-based underwriter John McGarrity has disappeared in the middle of several investigations into him for alleged fraud. McGarrity, who was President of the now-defunct Amberco Brokers Ltd. in the 1980s, had most recently been working in the Bahamas.

Fraudsters try to sell Caribbean Bank of Commerce

April 30, 1999
The Russian criminals behind the Caribbean Bank of Commerce, which Antiguan regulators have been trying to close down for over a year, have put the bank up for sale. A representative of CBC this month sent out mass e-mails offering four different banks for sale, including the Caribbean Bank of Commerce.

Ultimate irony: Hannover Re stock downgraded by Goldman Sachs

April 30, 1999
Hannover Re's purchase of the Clarendon insurance group is already causing the German reinsurer problems. On April 1, less than five weeks after the deal was completed, Hannover Re's stock was downgraded by investment bank Goldman Sachs due to concerns over Clarendon's exposure to the now infamous Unicover reinsurance pool.

Stirling Cooke might be up for sale

April 30, 1999
April was yet another disastrous month for Stirling Cooke Brown Holdings as its share price fell by 60 per cent and KPMG Peat Marwick resigned as its auditor after just two years. The company also announced it planned to hire a financial adviser to "explore ways to boost shareholder value", a move which often signals that a company is considering putting itself up for sale.

Marc Harris withdrawn as witness as libel trial draws near

April 30, 1999
The Harris Organization's libel complaint against Offshore Business News & Research, Inc, which publishes this newsletter, and the company's principal, David Marchant, is due to start on May 24 at the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida (in Miami). We were also notified this month that the group's founder, chairman and sole owner of its common stock, Marc Harris, has been withdrawn from The Harris Organization's witness list.

New Internet research engine

April 30, 1999
Offshore Alert can recommend a new Internet research tool that has been extremely useful in helping us to gather information about companies and individuals we investigate. Located at http://www.karnak.com, the web-site offers a method of searching the Internet that is more exhaustive and penetrating than more established search engines such as Yahoo and Excite.

Second Mezzanine Capital affiliate adjudged ‘stock of the month’

April 30, 1999
For the second month out of four, a company closely associated with Bermuda Stock Exchange-listed Mezzanine Capital Ltd. - which has been implicated in the manipulation of penny stocks - has been adjudged 'Stock of the Month' by www.hotstocknews.com, which promotes stocks over the Internet. NetVoice Technologies Inc. received the 'honor' in April, following on from a similar award in February to XtraNet Systems. Both companies gave the stock promotion firm shares in return for the plugs.

More firms list on dubious World Investors’ Stock Exchange

April 30, 1999
One of the First International Bank of Grenada's partners in crime, the Grenada-based World Investors' Stock Exchange, has stepped up its efforts to part the public from their savings. The shares of seven new companies were listed on WISE this month to go with the only other previous listing, that of EcoMed International, which we recently revealed had a false prospectus.

Insider Talking: April 30, 1999

April 30, 1999
The saying 'There's one born every minute' was never more evident than during a recent interview OffshoreAlert conducted with an Arizona-based creditor of Gilbert Ziegler, the chairman of the fraudulently-run First International Bank of Grenada; The depths to which The Oxford Club's parent, Baltimore-based Agora Inc., will stoop to attract new business seemingly knows no bounds; In the book the Sovereign Individual, which is co-authored by Lines Overseas Management shareholders Lord William Rees-Mogg and James Dale Davidson, there is a paragraph on Page 188 that seems to advocate an illegal act when advising readers on asset protection; Although we published a list of shareholders for Bermuda-based financial services firm Lines Overseas Management last month, the identities of many of the beneficial shareholders was hidden through companies; We reported last month on an alleged fraud being committed by Threshold Insurance Services, which is an apparently bogus insurer being operated by The Harris Organization of Panama and being investigated by banking and insurance regulators in Florida. We learned this month that official records in Panama show that the company has now been dissolved; and Accounting firm Deloitte & Touche, which is liquidating First Cayman Bank, is still forecasting a pay out of 45 to 55 cents on the dollar.