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City of Freeport
Freeport offers its citizens a very diverse lifestyle, incorporating the best of the old and new, the large and small. | The City of Freeport is a municipality...
City of Freeport
Freeport offers its citizens a very diverse lifestyle, incorporating the best of the old and new, the large and small. | The City of Freeport is a municipality located in Northwestern Illinois. Serving a community of over 23,000 citizens, the City of Freeport offers a variety of governmental services.
General information
Firm type
Pension Fund
Year founded
1827
Location
Region
North America
Country
Bahamas
City
Freeport
Corporate office
Freeport, Grand Bahama, Bahamas
Principals
Rupert Hayward
Co-Chairman, Grand Bahama Port Authority
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
What is the City of Freeport's governance structure?
The City of Freeport operates under the Grand Bahama Port Authority, created by the 1955 Hawksbill Creek Agreement. The GBPA is privately held, with the Hayward and St. George families each owning 50 percent. This structure grants them control over land use, port operations, and tax concessions across 230 square miles of Grand Bahama.
Who runs investment decisions at the City of Freeport?
Investment decisions are effectively governance decisions, not portfolio allocation decisions. The GBPA's co-chairmen, representing the Hayward and St. George families, oversee the port authority's revenue-generating assets. There is no separate public investment committee or CIO function disclosed.
How is the City of Freeport related to Hutchison Port Holdings?
Hutchison Port Holdings is the GBPA's joint venture partner for the Freeport Harbour and Grand Bahama International Airport. The partnership gives HPH operational control of port logistics while the GBPA retains ownership and regulatory authority over the concession land.
Does the City of Freeport invest like a traditional pension fund?
No. The fund's capital is concentrated in the real estate and infrastructure assets tied to the port concession — primarily the Freeport Harbour, the airport, DEVCO land parcels, and the Sea Air Business Centre. There is no evidence of a diversified public-markets portfolio.
What is the Hawksbill Creek Agreement?
The Hawksbill Creek Agreement is a 1955 pact between the Bahamian government and Wallace Groves that established Freeport as a free-trade zone. It exempts GBPA licensees from most taxes until 2054 and grants the port authority broad governance powers over the city's development, making it the foundational document for all investment activity in Freeport.
Does the City of Freeport maintain a philanthropic arm?
Yes, the GBPA coordinates disaster relief and community development through the Grand Bahama Disaster Relief Foundation. Separately, the Hayward family operates the Charles Hayward Foundation, and Rupert Hayward founded the Blue Action Lab to attract climate-resilience investment to the island.
What happens to the City of Freeport's assets after the Hawksbill Creek Agreement expires?
The current tax concessions run until 2054. What happens to the port authority's land holdings and governance rights after that date is a matter of ongoing negotiation between the Hayward and St. George families and the Bahamian government. No public succession plan for the asset base exists.
Profile maintained by Altss using OSINT (open-source intelligence), regulatory filings, licensed data partners, and verified direct submissions. Read the methodology. Last updated: . Continuous refresh with full update cycles at least every 30 days.
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