Finance Minister Paula Cox has been presented with the Pathfinder Award in recognition of her leadership after overseeing Bermuda's signature of almost 24 tax information exchange agreements (TIEAs) with other jurisdictions.

Minister Cox is currently in Miami, attending the fifth Annual Financial and Economic Development Conference entitled: 'Road to Recovery: Caribbean's Economic Development and Pension Funds'.

The event is being hosted by Atlantic Connection, an organisation which focuses on pension fund education and awareness for the Caribbean regions.

Minister Cox, who received the award during a lunchtime ceremony yesterday, said that she was extremely "humbled" at the recognition, pointing out that the TIEA signings were part of a collaborative effort within the Ministry of Finance.

And in her acknowledgement, she took the opportunity to recognise her father, the late Eugene Cox, former Finance Minister, for his work with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

"Firstly, I acknowledge how pleased and humbled I am to be accepting this award," she said. "Please know that in accepting it I recognise the contributions of those who have gone before in the Ministry of Finance, with reference to receiving this Pathfinder Award for the work done on Tax Information exchange Agreements. What is particularly poignant and significant for me is that that last man was the first Finance Minister the late Hon. C. Eugene Cox, CBE, JP MP.

"He came before me and prepared the ground by his work with the OECD in Paris and the signing of the commitment letter to tax exchange co-operation and to transparency.

"He and his team led the way. I was passed the baton and the Ministry of Finance team - specifically the Treaty Unit, under AFS Wayne Brown and Ms Laura Semos under the stewardship of the Financial Secretary, Mr. Donald Scott ably continue the work he commenced. My work has been an add-on in furtherance of his work."