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Turning back to our conversation with Prime Minister Dean Barrow, he announced today that the settlement between Atlantic International Bank and Federal Trade Commission could be finalized as early as next week.

As viewers are aware, the Sanctuary Belize Land Fraud fiasco started playing out last year when the investment scheme became the subject of a lawsuit by the FTC. That US regulatory body called it the biggest foreign land scam it has ever investigated. And even though it involved US developers selling land in US dollars to US Citizens, Belize's financial sector took some of the hit.

The largest off-shore bank in Belize, Atlantic International, had its foreign accounts frozen, and that eventually forced the bank to shut down. Hundreds of depositors, 80% of whom are US citizens, were left wondering what if anything they would be refunded from their savings accounts. 

It was a huge headache that the Government had to contain before it contaminated the local financial sector. So, they initiated talks with the FTC to lobby for a settlement between them and  Atlantic International.

When the press asked the PM about it today, he said that as far as he is aware, the FTC's Commissioners had given their approval for a final settlement:

Rt. Hon. Dean Barrow - Prime Minister
"The commissioners have signed off on the settlement. There is a press release that's going to come out next week, there is one house keeping aspect, they've got to go before the two judges to formalize the withdrawal of something in Miami and as it were, enshrinement of the settlement that the commissioners of the FTC have now approved. So it's just a matter of one or two additional housekeeping items but as I say, the commissioners have now signed off, have now approved and by next week you should get a press release."