HM Government of Gibraltar has today published the Financial Services Bill, the key part of the Legislative Reform Programme (LRP) that was launched in 2016, and is the single largest review and reform of our Financial Services legislation. The Bill will provide the legislative framework for all the financial services sectors in Gibraltar.

The Bill consolidates and rationalises over 90 financial services legislative instruments into one Act and additional supporting, sector-specific regulations. The LRP has concurrently implemented all EU legislation transpositions and local legislative initiatives during the lifetime of the programme. The LRP, through the new Financial Services Bill, provides a clear, more navigable and accessible legislative framework for financial services that will facilitate innovation both for the Regulator and the private sector. The Bill also ensures an appropriate degree of harmonisation between all financial services sectors and provides a comprehensive framework consistent with that of a modern international financial services jurisdiction.

HMGOG have worked closely with professionals at the GFSC responsible for the development and drafting of the Bill and have consulted extensively with the Finance Centre Council on the major areas of change proposed to the current legislation and provided for in this Bill as well as on individual parts of the Bill. These discussions will continue and Government intends to further engage with the Council and private sector firms on the Bill.

Minister for Financial Services Albert Isola commented, “what we have published today is the result of some 3 years of hard work in which Government, the GFSC and the private sector through the Finance Centre Council have worked together to produce a Bill which will serve us well for the next generation of Financial Services business. The Bill updates, consolidates and improves existing legislation, as well as introducing new measures which will serve to provide further checks and balances on the Regulator.

I am especially grateful to Ernest Lima and Julian Sacarello of the GFSC with whom we have met every Tuesday morning for some years discussing and reviewing every detail of this work as we have together developed and then consulted on each piece of this jigsaw. I am also grateful to the remainder of the LRP team at the GFSC and the Finance Centre Council. By working in this way we have demonstrated again what we can achieve when working together.”

The arrangements for the implementation of this Bill are currently being discussed with the Finance Centre Council in order to ensure the private sector have sufficient time to familiarise themselves with the Bill prior to its implementation. The GFSC will also be hosting a series of workshops in June to familiarise the sector with the Bill and its key component parts.