Fraudulent Scheme and Illegal Use of Central Bank Name and Likeness

Published: Tuesday January 18th, 2005

It has come to the attention of the Central Bank of The Bahamas that its name and that of certain of its employees are being fraudulently used in connection with an internet scheme.

This scheme purports that the & "Caribbean Central Bank" or the "Caribbean Financial Authority" requires an "International Guarantee Bond" be taken out with the Central Bank of The Bahamas who will supposedly issue a "Letter of Guarantee" as insurance against any loss when funds are transferred from the Caribbean.

While this is not a new scheme, it now introduces the fraudulent use of the name of the Central Bank of The Bahamas, its employees and the email address: "[email protected]" which, though similar, is not a Central Bank of the Bahamas email address.

This scheme and the fraudulent use of the name of the Central Bank of The Bahamas is being perpetrated under the name of a purported entity called "Banco de Paribas". No such entity is licensed to operate in or from within The Bahamas. A warning to this effect has been posted to the Central Bank of The Bahamas website.

Please note also that to our knowledge, the Caribbean Central Bank and the Caribbean Financial Authority do not exist.

Members of the public should exercise due caution when giving personal information over the internet, and should verify the legitimacy of any significant communication. Any such approach which raises concern should be reported to the Inspector of Banks and Trust Companies at the address below.

Inspector of Banks and Trust Companies Central Bank of The Bahamas P.O. Box N-4868 Nassau, Bahamas Tel.: (242) 302-2615 Fax: (242) 356-3909 Email: [email protected]