Guyana Opposition party appeals to UN, CARICOM over closure of bank accounts

Guyana opposition We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) party, led by U.S.-sanctioned businessman Azruddin Mohamed, has written to the United Nations (UN) and the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) to protest the closure of bank accounts belonging to several of its candidates.

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In letters addressed to UN Secretary-General António Guterres and CARICOM Secretary-General Dr. Carla Barnett, the party named the Bank of Nova Scotia, the Guyana Bank for Trade and Industry, the New Building Society, and Demerara Bank as institutions that have taken action against WIN members. Citizens Bank, however, was not listed, even though it also closed the accounts of WIN candidates.

The letters, copies of which were released to the press on Wednesday, were signed by WIN’s General Secretary Odessa Primus. The party said banks had closed accounts, cancelled loans, and denied access to financial services for its members and candidates.

WIN has urged the UN and CARICOM to intervene by:

Publicly condemning the actions of the banks, which it described as “discriminatory practices” and “an assault on human and political rights.”

Demanding the reinstatement of all affected accounts and full access to salaries, savings, and services for its members.

Engaging the Government of Guyana and the financial institutions involved to prevent further political discrimination.

Deploying observers and monitors to investigate the matter and ensure alternative access to financial services until the situation is resolved.

The banks’ actions are linked to concerns about WIN’s association with Mohamed, who, along with his father Nazar Mohamed, was sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) on June 11, 2024, for alleged gold smuggling and corruption. Former Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Labour, Mae Thomas, was also sanctioned.

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Financial institutions in Guyana have been under pressure to strengthen compliance with Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) regulations. These measures aim to prevent illicit funds from entering the banking system and to protect international relationships with correspondent banks.

Guyana has previously faced fallout from weak compliance. In 2016, Bank of America and Citibank ended correspondent banking relationships with local banks over money laundering concerns, severely affecting overseas wire transfers, remittances, and international trade. The situation was part of a wider “de-risking” trend in the Caribbean, where global banks severed ties with jurisdictions seen as high-risk.

WIN maintains that the closures amount to political persecution and has called for international attention to safeguard what it says are the human and political rights of its candidates.