(1) Subject to this section, and to section 50, a financial institution shall retain, in its original form for the minimum retention period applicable to the document—
(a) a document that relates to a financial transaction carried out by the institution in its capacity as a financial institution and, without limiting the generality of this, includes a document that relates to—
(i) the opening or closing by a person of an account with the institution,
(ii) the operation by a person of an account with the institution,
(iii) the opening or use by a person of a deposit box held by the institution,
(iv) the telegraphic or electronic transfer of funds by the institution on behalf of a person to another person,
(v) the transmission of funds between Saint Lucia and a foreign country or between foreign countries on behalf of a person, or
(vi) an application by a person for a loan from the institution, where a loan is made to the person under the application; and
(b) a document that relates to a financial transaction carried out by the institution in its capacity as a financial institution that is given to the institution by or on behalf of the person, whether or not the document is signed by or on behalf of the person.
(2) For the purposes of this section, the expression “minimum retention period” means—
(a) where the document relates to the opening of an account with the institution, the period of 7 years after the day on which the account is closed;
(b) where the document relates to the opening by a person of a deposit box held by the institution, the period of 7 years after the day on which the deposit box ceases to be used by the person; and
(c) in any other case, the period of 7 years after the day on which the transaction takes place.
(3) Subsection (1) does not apply to a financial transaction document that relates to a single deposit, credit, withdrawal, debit or transfer of an amount of money that does not exceed $5,000 or such larger amount as may be prescribed for purposes of this subsection.
(4) A financial institution required to retain documents under this section shall retain them on microfilm or in such other manner that makes retrieval of the information contained in the documents or the documents as the case may be reasonably practicable.
(5) A financial institution that contravenes subsection (1) or (4) commits an offence against this section and is liable, on summary conviction, to a fine of $50,000.
(6) This section does not limit any other obligation of a financial institution to retain documents.