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FIBG chairman calls for ‘positive energy’ to turn bank around

July 31, 2000
On July 4, 2000, not long before Adrian Ball's audit of the First International Bank of Grenada was completed, the bank's chairman, Richard Downes, sent an extraordinary letter to FIBG's depositors.In the 10-page letter, Downes acknowledged that FIBG was "experiencing a severe cash-flow problem" and asked clients for their "forgiveness".He then called on depositors to help to overcome the problems through "the flow of positive energy" in order to "reverse the polarities" of the "negative energy" surrounding the bank.

First Cayman Bank Ltd. v. Jabor Bin Mohamed Al Thani et al: Writ of Summons

July 26, 2000
Writ of Summons in First Cayman Bank Ltd. (in Liquidation) v. Jabor Bin Mohamed Al Thani, Khalifa Bin Jabor Al Thani, Khalid Bin Jabor Al Thani, Massood Hussain Khan, Gulf Converting Industries Company Ltd., and Syed Fayyad Hussain, all of Qatar, at the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands.

Panama: Manuel E. Fernandez

July 6, 2000
Application for the appointment of a Commissioner to collect evidence for a criminal investigation in Panama into Manuel Fernandez and Armando Antonio Ciniglio Manzoo for alleged fraud.

Terry Neal denies Exchange Bank and Trust was operated from Nevis

June 30, 2000
Nevis-based offshore provider Terry Neal has denied that his firm Nevis American Trust Co. Ltd. operated Exchange and Bank Trust from the island, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary.Nauru-registered EBT, which was not licensed in Nevis, is being investigated in the US and Canada for allegedly laundering the proceeds of securities fraud and has had US$16.9 million of assets frozen in Vancouver.

Former SG Hambros COO charged with $700 million offense

June 30, 2000
Craig Major has been criminally charged with issuing false letters of credit for amounts totaling $700 million while serving as Chief Operating Officer for SG Hambros Bank & Trust (Bahamas) Ltd. in Nassau.As COO, Major had approximately 80 staff under him at the bank and, before his current problems, had been publicly held out as a role model for Bahamians by Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham.

Barbados attorney Yolande Bannister appears to drop two suspect banks

June 30, 2000
Barbados-based attorney Yolande Bannister claims that her law and company management firms no longer represent two fraudulently-run banks. Offshore Alert has previously reported that Bannister's Alpha & Omega Law Chambers/YBG Management in Bridgetown, Barbados, served as the administrative office for the crooked Digital Commerce Bank.

German police investigate Marc Harris

June 30, 2000
The Panamanian authorities have received yet another request for assistance from a foreign agency investigating alleged crimes involving The Harris Organization financial services group. La Prensa, which is the main newspaper in Panama, reported in June that Interpol in Wiesbaden, Germany, had submitted a written request for help to their counterparts in Panama on March, 8, 2000. According to La Prensa, the Germans are investigating an alleged fraud committed in Germany and Switzerland and allegedly involving Heinz Richard, 52, someone called 'Hintermeier' and a company named Victus Commerz AG.

More revelations about the great Grenada banking scandal

June 30, 2000
Just when you thought it couldn't get any worse, the great Grenada banking scandal reached new levels of farce this month.One bank is operating without a banking licence, another is capitalized by a painting and the First International Bank of Grenada was still open for business at the end of June. Open, that is, to accept deposits but not to pay interest to its depositors, many of whom have complained to the island's regulators that they have not received interest payments for several months.Even allowing for corruption and incompetence, the refusal of the Grenada government to close down FIBG has led to one of the most bizarre situations in the history of offshore banking.

Bank of Bermuda still seeks 60-40 ownership exemption

June 30, 2000
Bank of Bermuda CEO Henry Smith became caught up in a public controversy recently over the bank's efforts to be exempted from a law the restricts foreign ownership of local companies to 40 per cent.

Business card belies former plumber’s bank directorship denials

May 31, 2000
Parties involved with Grenada-registered Meridian Investment Bank are still denying that former plumber Sheldon Mickelson and Burdett Streeter are directors of the bank, despite evidence to the contrary.The denials on behalf of Mickelson are particularly bizarre since he has recently been handing out business cards in the US that read 'Meridian Investment Bank Ltd., Sheldon Mickelson, Director'.

Regulators freeze assets of bank controlled by Terry Neal

May 31, 2000
A Nauru-registered bank that is operated out of Nevis by offshore provider and author Terry Neal is at the centre of a major stock fraud investigation in the United States and Canada.Investigators allege that Exchange Bank and Trust helped launder millions of dollars from illegal trading in US stocks through bank and brokerage accounts in Vancouver and Nevis-registered entities.

Eugene Herbert threatens legal action over Nevis credit union fiasco

May 31, 2000
Nevis-based offshore provider Eugene Herbert is contemplating legal action against California-based attorney N. Scott Grant in relation to an entity called World Investors Credit Union LC.Herbert, who runs Nevis International Trust Company Ltd., said he was disturbed to learn in last month's Offshore Alert that he was being described in promotional material as Managing Director of WICU.

Grenada regulator Michael Creft is ‘apparently corrupt’, says FIBG auditor

April 30, 2000
Grenada's Registrar of Offshore Financial Services, Michael Creft, was described last year as being "apparently corrupt" by the first accountant who attempted to audit the books of the First International Bank of Grenada. In a letter to Prime Minister Keith Mitchell, Lauriston Wilson wrote that Creft's actions relating to FIBG were "suspect and lead to the inescapable conclusion that he is apparently corrupt".

Attorney Scott Grant accused of selling sham offshore credit union

April 30, 2000
Attorney Nigel Scott Grant has been reported to the California Bar Association by a client who claims to have been ripped off over the purchase of a Nevis-registered 'credit union'. California-based Johnson Richards & Co. is seeking to recover about $53,000 in legal fees and other costs allegedly paid to acquire a fully-functioning credit union from Grant and prepare for its operation.

Meridian Investment Bank run by former plumber

April 30, 2000
One of the banks linked with the First International Bank of Grenada group is co-owned and partly run by a former plumber and two former bankrupts, Offshore Alert can reveal. The ex-plumber is Florida resident Sheldon A. Mickelson, 40, who we have been told by two sources is one of the senior partners in Meridian Investment Bank, which is one of the many 'sub-banks' sponsored by FIBG. 

‘It all seems very strange’ – A look at the Imperial Consolidated Group in the UK

April 30, 2000
In the course of our inquiries into the Imperial Consolidated Group, which has regional offices in the Bahamas, the Cayman Islands and Grenada, Offshore Alert talked with a local journalist in Lincolnshire who visited ICG's offices at Brookenby about 12-18 months ago. His report, which appears below, confirmed that the group is one of the largest private employers in the area and has added to the mystique that surrounds ICG, which has become one of the highest profile offshore companies over the last few years.

U. S. regulator issues warning against Digital Commerce Bank

April 30, 2000
The Caribbean Bank of Commerce, which had its banking license revoked in Antigua last year, has been up to its old tricks again. On March 29, 2000, the US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency put out a warning about something calling itself Digital Commerce Bank Ltd., which is one of the names CBC now operates under.

United Kingdom: Peter Paul Gellatly et al

April 28, 2000
Application for the appointment of a Commissioner to collect evidence for a criminal investigation in the United Kingdom into an alleged advance fee fraud by Peter Paul Gellatly, David Robertson and David Tallant.

First International Bank of Grenada Ltd. et al v. David Marchant et al: Dismissal Order

April 19, 2000
Final Order of Dismissal in First International Bank of Grenada Ltd., of Grenada; International Depositors' Reinsurance Corporation Ltd., doing business as IDIC, of Nevis, and World Investors' Stock Exchange Ltd., of Grenada v. David Marchant and Offshore Business News & Research, Inc. at the U. S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.
lincoln-fraser-jared-brook

Imperial Consolidated Group’s links to High Yield Investment Programs

March 31, 2000
Offshore Alert has obtained documents which implicate the Imperial Consolidated Group in the sale of investment programs purporting to offer guaranteed returns of as much as 30 per cent per month. In one program, Imperial Consolidated offers to pay a return of 9.25 per cent per month while simultaneously paying a 40 per cent commission to brokers who introduce investors.

Regulators dither over First International Bank of Grenada

March 31, 2000
There has been considerable activity in Grenada over the last month as regulators belatedly try to get to grips with the fact that at least one-third of all banks incorporated on the island appear to be scams. The Grenada International Financial Services Authority, a newly-formed body designed to better regulate the offshore sector, has held several meetings to discuss the First International Bank of Grenada.

Application to form Bermuda Internet Bank Ltd.

March 31, 2000
An application has been made to incorporate what would be only the fourth bank in Bermuda and one that would transact business primarily over the Internet. The Bermuda Internet Bank Ltd. is a joint venture between the Bank of Butterfield, Mutual Risk Management Ltd., ACE Insurance, Natsteel Technologies, Keytech Ltd., which is the parent company of the Bermuda Telephone Company; and Singapore-based banker Sami Midani.

Bank of Bermuda (Cayman) officers fired over handling of client accounts

March 31, 2000
Three officers of the Bank of Bermuda (Cayman) have been fired following an internal investigation into the bank's handling of accounts controlled by allegedly crooked client Michael Gause. The Bank of Bermuda confirmed that it terminated the employment of Michael Day, Marc Vanmarsenille and David Spohr on December 8, 1999 following their suspensions a month earlier.

Criminal indictment against Suisse Security Bank & Trust client

February 29, 2000
Bahamas-based Suisse Security Bank & Trust, whose dubious clients have been exposed in the last two editions of Offshore Alert, is the banker to yet another allegedly fraudulent investment scheme, we can disclose. Although not a defendant, the bank is mentioned in a criminal indictment filed at the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California against Larry W. Wilcoxson, David Baxter, C. William Gordin, Roxanne Albaugh and John R. Witzke.

FIBG reports fictitious net income of $60 billion

February 29, 2000
The founding chairman of the First International Bank of Grenada has informed Grenada's chief offshore regulator, Michael Creft, that FIBG has made a net income of $60 billion in its first two years in business. The astonishing claim is made in a rambling, 26-page letter sent by Van A. Brink (a.k.a. Gilbert Allen Ziegler) to Creft on December 23, 1999 in an effort to assuage the regulator's concerns about the bank.

Nine charged with money laundering at Euro Bank

February 29, 2000
Cayman Islands police have brought charges against nine people as part of an investigation into the alleged laundering of $25 million through Euro Bank Corp. (in liquidation). Four of the accused are residents of the Cayman Islands - including three former officers of the bank, while the other five live in California.

The views of Grenada-based banker Peter Johansson on the FIBG scandal

February 29, 2000
As the First International Bank of Grenada scandal made its way onto the front-page of The Wall Street Journal on February 29, Offshore Alert wondered how the negative publicity was affecting the legitimate financial institutions located on the island. Offshore Alert conducted a Question and Answer session with Peter Johansson, CEO of Swedish-owned Bank Crozier Limited, which was the second offshore bank to be licensed in Grenada in October, 1997.

Larry Barnabe – a businessman to be avoided at all costs

February 29, 2000
Offshore Alert has uncovered further disturbing information about the dubious past of another of the senior officers within the First International Bank of Grenada group. As with several other North Americans involved in the FIBG scam, Canadian citizen Laurent Barnabe, who is known as Larry Barnabe, has a history of ripping off investors.

Suisse Security Bank & Trust accepts fraudulent client

January 31, 2000
Bahamas-based Suisse Security Bank & Trust has replaced Eurofed Bank, of Antigua, as the banker for the fraudulently run Accord Insurance group, we have been told.SSBT's decision to provide banking services to Accord, which claims to offer its clients "guaranteed" interest of up to 50 per cent per month, raises serious concerns about its due diligence procedures.

Bahamas bank up for sale following death of majority owner

January 31, 2000
A stake of slightly less than 70 per cent of Bahamas-based Surety Bank & Trust is up for sale for a price in the $4 million range. The bank, which was established five years ago, has assets under management of between $16 million and $17 million, said one of its directors, who did not want to be named.

Harris Organization moves closer to collapse

January 31, 2000
There are increasing indications that The Harris Organization financial services group of Panama is edging closer to collapse. Several of the group's clients have contacted Offshore Alert recently to complain that their requests to redeem all or part of their investments have been ignored.

Wellington Bank & Trust – same scam, different name

January 31, 2000
Offshore Alert has uncovered another highly dubious Grenada-registered bank that is owned by a former bankrupt. Wellington Bank & Trust, which was incorporated on July 27, 1998, is owned by John Edward Brinker Jr. and Gary Joel Bentz, who are both based in Ohio.

Latest on massive Grenada banking fraud

January 31, 2000
Offshore Alert can this month reveal further disturbing details about the massive financial fraud that is being committed on the island of Grenada in what appears to be a joint effort between the island's government and the private sector. What is currently taking place in Grenada mirrors what happened in Montserrat in the late 1980s when approximately 300 'paper' banks established with phantom capital defrauded foreign clients of tens of millions of dollars before eventually being closed down by the UK police in 1989/90.

FIBG hooks up with Alexander’s World (Or could it be Wayne’s World?)

January 31, 2000
Two more companies have listed on the sham Grenada-registered World Investors' Stock Exchange, bringing the total number of listed issuers to approximately 20. They are Bahamas-registered Alexander Development International Corporation and St. Vincent-registered Molecular Waste Technologies Inc.

Sterling International Bank & Trust and its dubious mutual funds

January 31, 2000
A Grenada-based banking group that appears to be controlled by an attorney located in the Turks & Caicos Islands is promoting dubious investment products, OffshoreAlert can reveal. Sterling International Bank & Trust and its apparent owner, attorney Philip Johnston, have already been involved in one fiasco last year involving the Bermuda-registered Heritage Growth Fund.

United Kingdom: John Esin et al

January 13, 2000
Application for the appointment of a Commissioner to collect evidence for a criminal investigation in the United Kingdom into John Nte Anwana Esin and Cornelis Van Aken for allegedly defrauding Barclays Bank.

OffshoreAlert Awards For 1999

December 31, 1999
Annual OffshoreAlert Awards for: Worst Regulator, Worst Regulated Jurisdictions, Lie of the Year, Coward of the Year, Crooks of the Year, Jurisdiction in Most Need of a PR Make-Over, Most Small-Minded Decision, Most Arrogant Jurisdiction, Most Stupid Comments, Here Today, Gone Tomorrow Award, and Most Responsible Regulators.

Eurofed Bank goes from receivership to liquidation

December 31, 1999
Eurofed Bank, which went into receivership in November, has now gone into liquidation. The bank went into liquidation by order of the High Court of Justice of Antigua and Barbuda on December 3, 1999.