See below a press release issued by the Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs Anil Nandlall:
The Government of Guyana has received dozens of complaints from members of the public, in relation to the operations of a financial outfit, located on the East Coast of Demerara. The Guyana Securities Council (GSC) has written to the President Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali, the Vice President Mr. Bharrat Jagdeo and the Commissioner of Police, informing them of the operations of this scheme in the country.
As a result, the Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, yesterday, met with and received from the GSC a report of the operations of this agency. In short, the Report describes the agency, styled Accelerated Capital Firm Inc. (ACFI), as a “Pyramid or a Ponzi Scheme” that has received hundreds of millions of dollars from thousands of Guyanese.
Today, Government assembled a high-level team headed by the Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, the Commissioner of Police, the Governor of the Central Bank, the Head of the Financial Intelligence Unit and Head of the Guyana Securities Council to immediately, adopting a multi-sector approach, investigate the operations of ACFI, with a view, inter alia, of reimbursing monies to the persons who “invested” in the scheme. Persons with relevant information are invited to assist in the investigations.
In its Report, GSC noted that the business engaged in by ACFI violates several pieces of legislation across the fiscal regulatory architecture.
Currently, Accelerated Capital Firm Inc. (ACFI) is not licensed by the Guyana Securities Council to solicit investments from the public. Under the Anti-Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism Act, it is required for all investors to provide the source of funds and ensure that the financial activities and money laundering risks associated with a customer are properly recorded. The Guyana Securities Council is not in receipt of that information from the application submitted.
