GEORGETOWN, Guyana – July 16, 2026 – Guyana is moving forward with a sweeping new anti-financial crime initiative, launching the Guyana Compliance Commission (GCC) to bring high-risk non-financial industries including law firms, accounting practices, automobile dealerships, and pawnbroking businesses under enhanced regulatory scrutiny for potential money laundering activity, Attorney General Anil Nandlall announced this week.
Speaking at the opening of the 9th Annual General Meeting for the Assets Recovery Inter-Agency Network of the Caribbean (ARIN-CARIB) on Wednesday, Nandlall explained that the targeted sectors were selected for heightened oversight because they regularly facilitate large-scale transactions that carry elevated risk of being exploited for illicit financial activity. “They do a lot of transactions that have money laundering implications,” Nandlall told local outlet Demerara Waves Online News in an interview following the announcement.
Under the new regulatory structure, the GCC will operate as a specialized supervisory body reporting directly to Guyana’s existing Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU). The government has targeted full operational activation of the commission by November 2026, ahead of the upcoming conference of the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force (CFATF), where Guyana is scheduled to present a progress update on its implementation of reforms outlined in the body’s fourth round of cross-national mutual evaluation.
The path for Caribbean nations to roll out this type of expanded oversight cleared recently following a landmark ruling by the United Kingdom’s Privy Council in a Jamaican legal case. The ruling clarified that while attorney-client privilege remains protected, legal professionals’ overarching duty to uphold national anti-money laundering law takes precedence when suspicious transactions are involved. Nandlall emphasized that this ruling aligns with the new regulatory framework Guyana is implementing: “They don’t have to say what their clients tell them but once they conduct a transaction of a particular type and volume, they have to report it. That is the way the world is running.”
Established under dedicated new legislation, the GCC has already completed its initial setup phase: a governing board led by former New Building Society director Anil Beharry has been appointed, and eight full-time staff positions have recently been approved to fill out the commission’s operational team.
Nandlall framed the creation of the GCC as a critical milestone in reinforcing the integrity of Guyana’s financial system. “This represents a significant step forward in strengthening Guyana’s supervisory framework for designated non-financial businesses and professions. As the Commission continues to expand its operational capacity, it will play an increasingly important role in protecting the integrity of Guyana’s financial system through effective supervision, enhanced compliance monitoring and stronger engagement with reporting entities,” he said.
Beyond the new compliance commission, Nandlall confirmed that the Guyanese government is also developing a dedicated regulatory and supervisory framework for virtual assets and virtual asset service providers, as part of ongoing legislative reforms designed to align the country’s financial rules with global anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing standards.