Mr Trevor James Kelham and Ms Sarah Jayne Sarre (2023-05-18)

Summary

This is a public enforcement statement by the Guernsey Financial Services Commission (GFSC) concerning Mr Trevor James Kelham and Ms Sarah Jayne Sarre, former senior officers of a licensed Guernsey fiduciary business. The Commission found that both individuals failed to meet the fit and proper criteria under the Fiduciaries Law due to serious failures in managing financial crime risk, including inadequate remediation of client due diligence deficiencies and mishandling of a large-scale transfer and termination of client structures potentially linked to tax evasion.

• Prohibition: Mr Kelham is prohibited for 4 years from holding positions as director, controller, partner, manager or financial adviser under any of the Regulatory Laws.
• Exemption disapplied: Mr Kelham's Section 3(1)(g) exemption under the Fiduciaries Law is disapplied for 4 years.
• Financial penalties: A financial penalty of £45,000 was imposed on Mr Kelham and £13,500 on Ms Sarre under section 11D of the Financial Services Commission Law.
• Public statement: The Commission issued this public statement under section 11C of the Financial Services Commission Law detailing the findings against both individuals.
• Findings against Mr Kelham: Failure to remediate CDD deficiencies on an inward client transfer for 2.5 years, and failure to properly investigate and act on concerns about a USD 1.4 billion outward transfer/termination of client structures potentially involving tax evasion, including signing unsubstantiated tax confirmation letters.
• Findings against Ms Sarre: As director and Acting MLRO, failure to properly investigate internal suspicious activity reports (iSARs), failure to ensure an effective SAR procedure, and failure to give due weight to CRS avoidance and tax amnesty concerns before assets left Guernsey.

The statement is a disciplinary and reputational notice rather than a rule of general application; it does not create ongoing obligations for the wider industry but serves as a warning to licensees, directors and MLROs about expected standards of financial crime risk management, board oversight and internal control compliance under the Handbook and Code of Corporate Governance.

Key obligations

• Mr Kelham must not hold any director, controller, partner, manager or financial adviser position under the Regulatory Laws for 4 years from the decision date (25 April 2023).
• Mr Kelham's Section 3(1)(g) exemption under the Fiduciaries Law is disapplied for 4 years from the decision date.
• Mr Kelham must pay a £45,000 financial penalty imposed under section 11D of the Financial Services Commission Law.
• Ms Sarre must pay a £13,500 financial penalty imposed under section 11D of the Financial Services Commission Law.

Applies to

fiduciaries, licensed fiduciary businesses, directors, managing directors, compliance officers, money laundering reporting officers (MLROs)

Deadlines

• 25 April 2023 plus 4 years: Period during which Mr Kelham is prohibited from holding specified positions and during which his Fiduciaries Law exemption is disapplied.