On 22 October 2009 the Guernsey Financial Services Commission decided to make the following public statement in respect of Ms Pippa Marie Harbour.

It decided:

1. to make prohibition orders under the Protection of Investors Law, the Banking Law, the Fiduciary Law and the Insurance Laws. These orders prohibit Ms Harbour from acting as a director, controller, partner, manager, general representative or authorised insurance representative in:

a) a controlled investment business;

b) a deposit-taking business;

c) a fiduciary business which undertakes regulated activities; and

d) an insurance business or the business of an insurance manager or an insurance intermediary and

2. to make this public statement under section 11C of the Financial Services Commission Law.

The Commission considered it reasonable and necessary to make these decisions having concluded that Ms Harbour was not a fit and proper person to be a director, controller, partner, manager, general representative or authorised insurance representative in a regulated financial services business in Guernsey.

The background to these decisions is that Ms Harbour provided false information to the Guernsey Financial Services Commission, including falsely claiming to hold a Master’s degree in Business Administration and to be a member of the Securities and Investment Institute. Ms Harbour showed a lack of integrity in informing the Commission, in Personal Questionnaire forms and elsewhere, that she held those qualifications/memberships.

Ms Harbour also failed to disclose in Personal Questionnaire forms that she had previously been known by another name. She gave the Commission birth dates of 22 November 1960 and 22 November 1959 which are both at variance with records recording her birth, marriages and bonds relating to real property.

It is important for regulated financial services businesses and individuals working within them to be aware that false statements about qualifications or other matters that demonstrate a lack of integrity will be investigated and acted upon by the Commission.

The case also underlines the practical importance of financial services businesses meeting their employee screening obligations under the Bailiwick’s anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism framework.

http://www.gfsc.gg/Fiduciary/News/Pages/Ms-Pippa-Marie-Harbour.aspx

Notes:

i.This is the first public statement made by the Commission under powers which came into effect in 2008.

ii.Ms Harbour will commit an offence if she performs or agrees to be employed as a director, controller, partner, manager, general representative or authorised insurance representative in relation to a regulated activity carried on by a regulated finance business in breach of the prohibition orders.

iii.Under the regulatory legislation, regulated finance businesses must take reasonable care to ensure that none of their functions, in relation to the carrying on of a regulated activity, is performed by a person who is prohibited from performing that function by a prohibition order.

iv.Any person with information to indicate that such an offence has been committed is asked to contact the Commission’s Fiduciary and Intelligence Services Division.

The Financial Services Commission (Bailiwick of Guernsey) Law, 1987 as amended (“the Financial Services Commission Law”)
The Protection of Investors (Bailiwick of Guernsey) Law, 1987 as amended (the Protection of Investors Law”)
The Banking Supervision (Bailiwick of Guernsey) Law, 1994 as amended (“the Banking Law”)
The Regulation of Fiduciaries, Administration Businesses and Company Directors, etc. (Bailiwick of Guernsey) Law, 2000 as amended (“the Fiduciary Law”)
The Insurance (Bailiwick of Guernsey) Law, 2002 as amended and The Insurance Managers and Insurance Intermediaries (Bailiwick of Guernsey) Law, 2002 as amended (together “the Insurance Laws”)

Public statement relating to the person known as: Ms Pippa Marie Harbour of Shoreham Lodge, La Rue des Varendes, Castel, Guernsey GY5 7RF