GRA head to write bank over decision to close Superbet’s accounts, attorney says

Commissioner General of the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) Godfrey Statia has made a promise to pen a “letter of comfort” to the Bank of Baroda (Guyana) Inc. to support the request made by Guiana Holdings Inc. for a reconsideration of bank’s decision to close the company’s accounts, company attorney Anil Nandlall has said.

The bank had given the company, which has accused the Gaming Authority of denying it a Good Standing certificate in a desperate attempt to force it out of business, until May 31st to produce a licence for the Superbet operations or risk the suspension of all business relations.

Speaking to Stabroek News on Monday, Nandlall said that following the Gaming Authority’s public retraction of a statement that a principal of Superbet was convicted of a crime and served time in jail, it wrote to Superbet identifying two companies that can do an AML/CFT audit.

The Gaming Authority, in a press release last month, had explained that the principal’s record resulted in the audit being required and that the outcome would determine whether the certificate would be issued. Without the certificate, Superbet will be unable to get the licence it needs to operate from the GRA.

Nandlall indicated that the Authority had promised to furnish the company with that information after its representatives had indicated that they were unaware of persons/companies who can do such an audit.

The attorney pointed out that the company is still waiting on the Authority to provide the Terms of Reference which will guide the audit, so that that the company can prepare for it.

With regards to the letter to the bank by Statia, Nandlall said that it “is intended to convey in principle that the GRA has no difficulty with our client and no difficulty in issuing the licence provided that the certificate of Good Standing is issued by the Guyana Gaming Authority.”

He informed that Guiana Holdings will continue its Superbet operations as normal and continues to maintain that it wasn’t its fault that the licence was not issued.

The bank, by way of letter dated May 20th, 2019 informed the company’s Operations Manager Shrikant Kisoensingh that the Business Licence for the year 2018 and 2019 is necessary to complete the Enhanced Due Diligence (EDD) which is mandated by law. The last licence the company obtained expired on December 31, 2017.

“Please note that the submission of this document is essential for our continued relationship with you. If we do not receive your Business Licence by 31.05.2019 all operations in the account will be suspended until submission of the said licence,” the letter said.

That development came days after Stabroek News reported that Kisoensingh was questioned by the police about the legality of his business. Nandlall had also chronicled the difficulties the Surinamese national was facing in obtaining a certificate of good standing from the Gaming Authority.

Superbet was introduced to Guyana in 2012 and has since grown. It has more than 175 locations countrywide and employs in excess of 500 Guyanese directly and indirectly.