Les Khan Confirms His Resignation as Head of Saint Kitts & Nevis CIU
Local media reports yesterday indicated Les Khan, longtime CEO of the Saint Kitts & Nevis Citizenship by Investment Unit (CIU), had resigned from his post but cited no local sources nor official statements.
Today, however, IMI has confirmed the rumors directly with Mr Khan:
“Yes. I have resigned,” responded Khan to a message from IMI, and indicated he preferred not to provide further comments beyond confirming that he tendered his resignation already on the 5th of this month and that it will not take effect until January 1st.
Khan began work at the Saint Kitts & Nevis CIU already in 2014 as an outside consultant, then as a representative of IPSA, the due diligence firm. In the following year, the Kittitian government retained him as a consultant. Finally, in September 2016, Khan was appointed CEO of the CIU. Khan was also the first Caribbean CIU boss to act as Chairman of the Citizenship by Investment Program Association (CIPA), a regional body formed to foster closer cooperation among the Eastern Caribbean CIUs.
Leadership changes at Caribbean CIUs often coincide with changes in national governments. In July this year, both Saint Lucia and Grenada saw new administrations take office; three months later, both countries had placed their respective CIUs under new management. Les Khan now departs from the CIU some four months after a change of government in Saint Kitts & Nevis.
Preliminary results from this Tuesday’s general election in Dominica show incumbent Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit’s Labour Party taking 19 out of 21 available seats, indicating there’s little reason to expect any changes in the management of that country’s CIU in the near term. The election was boycotted by two major opposition parties, citing concerns about election irregularities and a lack of implementation of electoral reforms recommended by international observers.