The recent addition of a banking licence to Sterling Bank and Trusts portfolio of services is *“a clear and unequivocal demonstration of the faith, confidence and commitment in The Bahamas as a premier financial service center,”* according to The Hon. C.V. Hope Strachan, M.P., Minister of Financial Services.

Speaking at launch ceremonies for Sterling’s banking service the Minister said *“In the overall scheme of things Sterling had the choice of hundreds of financial services centres around the globe. They chose The Bahamas.”*

She added, *“The government of The Bahamas is committed to creating the most attractive environment possible through legislation, policy and the automation of systems to encourage financial services institutions to locate and expand operations in The Bahamas. As a jurisdiction we have built a solid reputation in our current lines of business such as trust, funds, insurance and banking; however, to maintain and extend our leadership position into other facets of international wealth management, we encourage and support our financial services partners to be creative and innovative in meeting the needs of their clients and creating competitive advantage.*

*“Sterling Global Financial is a prime example of this. Aside from the 1200 high net worth individuals and $9 Billion worth of assets under management The New Providence Income Fund (NPIF) has recently been the recipient of an award for best fixed income mortgage backed fund by Acquisition International (AI), a U.K based Internet Magazine widely read in the Financial Services Industry.”*