In light of the Stanford debacle, the Antiguan government has broadened the scope of the internal investigation of the island nation’s Financial Services Regulatory Commission (FSRC).

Noting that the country has been under international scrutiny as a result of the Allen Stanford and Stanford International Bank debacles, which have been further compounded by the indictment of Leroy King, the former head of the FSRC, Prime Minister Baldwin Spencer in an address to the nation last evening declared that the time has come for his Government to take decisive action.

“I have directed my Minister of Finance and the Economy to take the necessary steps to broaden the scope of the internal investigation of the FSRC.

As a result of this expansion in scope, the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force has agreed to provide internationally recognized industry specialists to assist in the investigation.

They will review the existing regulatory framework in order to make recommendations to strengthen the integrity of our financial services sector if necessary”, he stated.

Antigua has been badly hit by the debacle and its image has suffered.

The PM also announced that the government will probe allegations related to the IHI loan-repayment by the Labour Party administration. Spencer revealed that the Chief Justice of New South Wales, Australia, James Jacob Spigelman has accepted the appointment as sole commissioner.