Appleby Cayman Islands Regulatory Update ' Spring 2023

• Law Firm: Appleby
• Subject Matter: Finance and Banking, Government, Public Sector, Financial Services, Money Laundering, Fiscal & Monetary Policy
• Author: Mr Simon Raftopoulos, Menelik Miller and Miriam Smyth
• Published date: 28 February 2023

This update from Appleby's Cayman office focuses on key regulatory developments which took place in 2022. Each section is divided into parts setting out key legislative developments, relevant government consultations, key Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA) publications and key Department for International Tax Cooperation (DITC) publications.

We also examine some regulatory updates on the horizon for 2023 and discuss some key upcoming and anticipated changes.

Overall, the outlook for regulatory development remains very active. We encourage clients to keep a close eye on the horizon, and to contact Appleby to discuss the matters important to you.

Links to related Appleby published briefings and related CIMA and government publications are available throughout this document. The information provided below is up to date as of 23 February 2023.

LEGISLATIVE UPDATES

CAYMAN ISLANDS LEGISLATION

LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANIES ACT (2022 REVISION) (LLC ACT)

The LLC Act was amended on 19 October 2022 by the Limited Liability Companies (Amendment) Act, 2022 (LLC Amendment Act) which came into operation on that date. The LLC Amendment Act confirms the view that Appleby had taken since the legislation was initially passed: there is no need to file a certificate of amendment on membership changes with the Registrar of Companies whenever an LLC interest is issued or transferred. An LLC is separately required to maintain at its registered office, the names and addresses of each person who is a member, date they became/ceased to be a member(s) and the nature of their voting rights. There is no need to duplicate the effort by separately filing same with the Registrar.

THE COMPANIES (AMENDMENT) ACT, 2021 (COMPANIES AMENDMENT ACT)

The Companies Amendment Act came into force on 31 August 2022 and created a new standalone restructuring regime, separate from existing company law winding-up procedures. Under the new regime, directors are empowered to petition the Court for the appointment of a restructuring officer if the company is (or is likely to become) unable to pay its debts and intends to present a compromise or arrangement to its creditors.

CONSULTATIONS

CIMA PUBLISHED AML GUIDANCE

On 16 December 2022, CIMA published a consultation paper proposing to amend the guidance notes on the prevention and detection of money laundering, terrorist financing and proliferation financing in the Cayman Islands (AML/CFT/PF Guidance) by introducing guidance for licensees and registrants using technological solutions for remote and virtual customer onboarding and ongoing client due-diligence monitoring. This consultation closed on 1 February 2023. The additional clarity around "e-KYC" is fully supported by Appleby and welcomed by the financial services industry and is indicative of CIMA's willingness to...