Bahamas NIF Probe: What Comes Next After 13 October
WHAT COMES NEXT · BAHAMAS
Key Facts
- —The country The Bahamas, an English-speaking island nation off Florida whose currency is fixed one-to-one to the US dollar.
- —Why it matters Lawmakers are tracing B$700 million (about US$700 million) in borrowed public money that the government linked to a state fund.
- —Why now On Tuesday, 13 October, the Public Accounts Committee chairman said the fund’s board never met and key records are still missing.
- —What happened The committee expects to finish its main investigative work in October and publish a report by mid-November.
- —What it means for you The probe tests how a dollar-pegged borrower accounts for money raised from international investors.
- —Still open Whether the Ministry of Finance hands over transaction records and names the legal authority it used.
The NIF probe in The Bahamas now enters its decisive weeks, as a parliamentary committee pushes for records on B$700 million (about US$700 million). The Public Accounts Committee aims to finish its main investigative work in October and publish a report by mid-November.
For US readers, the stakes are fiscal credibility in a dollar-pegged country that borrows from international investors. Our explainer Bahamas National Investment Fund: What We Know sets out how the fund was meant to work.
Where the NIF Probe Stands Now
The National Investment Fund (NIF) is a state fund allowed under a 2022 law to invest in infrastructure and other national projects. The government publicly linked about B$700 million (about US$700 million) in excess borrowing to it.
Michael Pintard, leader of the opposition Free National Movement, chairs the Public Accounts Committee (PAC). The PAC is a House of Assembly committee that examines how public money is spent.
On 13 October, Pintard named five people appointed to the fund’s board, with appointment papers dating from August 2025. He said correspondence with Central Bank Governor John Rolle confirmed the board has never met.
Pintard stressed that the inquiry is ongoing and that the committee has made no final findings. He said the PAC will follow the evidence and will not prejudge the outcome.
The Records the Committee Still Needs
The first next step in the NIF probe is documents. Pintard said the Ministry of Finance and the Treasury have not yet supplied the transaction records needed to trace the money.
He said the committee needs to know where the funds went, how they moved, which accounts were used and what transactions took place. Both agencies received formal requests at about the same time as the Central Bank and the Department of Legal Affairs.
Pintard credited Rolle and the Director of Legal Affairs with timely testimony and documents. Financial Secretary Simon Wilson and the Treasurer have both appeared, but he said gaps remain in the record.
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The Legal Authority Question
The second open step in the NIF probe is legal. The committee wants the Ministry of Finance to point to the specific authority that let it act in the fund’s name without the board.
The PAC is examining an account at the Central Bank that has been publicly described as the fund’s account. Pintard said evidence so far suggests the Ministry of Finance and the Treasury created and controlled it.
The 2022 Act says the board opens the fund’s account with a bank recommended by the Central Bank. It also requires audited statements to be laid in Parliament within six months of the financial year’s end.
The government has defended its handling of the money, citing the Public Finance Management Act and legal advice. Finance Minister Michael Halkitis has said B$310 million (about US$310 million) meant for the fund went to public infrastructure.
Halkitis has not published a breakdown of that spending. The government has not responded in detail to the committee’s latest update.
The Timeline to Mid-November
The PAC expects to complete the main work of the NIF probe this month. It has set a target of publishing its report by the middle of November.
The committee is also preparing findings on B$1.56 million (about US$1.56 million) in vouchers handed out before the May general election. The vouchers were reportedly used for building materials, and the PAC has received payment records and testimony.
Pintard has renewed calls for PAC hearings to be broadcast on the Parliamentary Channel. He said the Speaker of the House has twice refused formal requests to carry the meetings live.
How the government answers the report will shape the next phase of the NIF probe. The Nassau Guardian reported that the government has yet to explain how money moved without the board convening.
What It Means for You
The Central Bank of The Bahamas keeps the Bahamian dollar at a fixed B$1 to US$1. That peg makes the country familiar to US tourists, investors and second-home buyers.
A clear accounting of borrowed money would support confidence among the bond investors the government relies on. A drawn-out dispute over missing records could keep the issue in front of lenders for longer.
Nothing in the NIF probe so far changes travel, banking or currency rules for visitors and residents. Our guides The Bahamas Explained: The Islands, the Economy, the Politics and What to Watch and Investing in the Bahamas as a Foreigner: Property, Funds and the Zero-Tax Frame give the wider picture.
Regional context sits in Bahamas and Its Neighbours in the Caribbean. The committee itself sits in Nassau, the capital, on New Providence island.
What Is Not Known
It is not known whether the Ministry of Finance will supply the records before the committee’s October deadline. It is also unclear what legal authority it will cite for acting without the board.
It is not known whether the House of Assembly will debate the report or how the government will respond. No one has been charged, and the government says it acted lawfully on legal advice.
Frequently Asked Questions
When will the Public Accounts Committee report on the NIF?
The committee aims to finish its main investigative work in October. It has set a target of publishing its report by the middle of November.
What is the committee still waiting for?
It is waiting for transaction records from the Ministry of Finance and the Treasury. It also wants the ministry to name the legal authority it used to act in the fund’s name.
Has the NIF board ever met?
Pintard said correspondence with Central Bank Governor John Rolle confirmed that the board has never met. Appointment papers for its five members date from August 2025.
Has anyone been accused of a crime?
No one has been charged, and the committee says it has made no final findings. The government says it acted lawfully under the Public Finance Management Act and on legal advice.
Does the probe affect US visitors or investors?
Nothing announced so far changes travel, banking or currency rules for visitors. Investors are watching how the government accounts for money it borrowed from international markets.
Sources: The Tribune (PAC update, 14 October); thenassauguardian.com (PAC probe, 14 October); Official gazette (National Investment Funds Act 2022); thenassauguardian.com (fund balances, August); Central Bank of The Bahamas (the peg).
Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief · Editorial standards · Report an error