The Bahamas is the richest country in the West Indies and is ranked 14th in North America for nominal GDP.

Financial services constitute the second-most important sector of the Bahamian economy, accounting for about 15% of GDP.

The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the Bahamas is approximately $5.7 billion with tourism accounting for 50%, financial services nearly 20% and the balance spread among retail and wholesale trade, fishing, light manufacturing and agriculture.

[9] The European Union lists the Bahamas as one of several Caribbean "uncooperative jurisdictions" because it fails to meet tax fairness and transparency benchmarks.

[10] Tourism alone provides an estimated 51% of the gross domestic product (GDP) and employs about half the Bahamian workforce.

The Bahamian Government also has adopted a proactive approach to courting foreign investors and has conducted major investment missions to the Far East, Europe, Latin America, and Canada.

The Bahamas promulgated the International Business Companies (IBC) Act in January 1990 to enhance the country's status as a leading financial center.

Other initiatives include the enactment of the Foundations Act in 2004 and the planned introduction of legislation to regulate Private Trust Companies.

It actively seeks foreign investment aimed at increasing agricultural exports, particularly specialty food items.

The Bahamas is a beneficiary of the U.S.-Caribbean Basin Trade Partnership Act (CBTPA), Canada's CARIBCAN program, and the European Union's Lome IV Agreement.

The Bahamas has a few notable industrial firms: the Freeport pharmaceutical firm, PharmaChem Technologies (GrandBahama) Ltd. (formerly Syntex); the BORCO oil facility, also in Freeport, which transships oil in the region; the Commonwealth Brewery in Nassau, which produces Heineken, Guinness, and Kalik beers;[14] and Bacardi Corp., which distills rum in Nassau for shipment to the U.S. and European markets.

It provides investment products and services and attracts the majority of the corporate business deals in the Bahamas, most recently acting as financial advisor and placement agent for the largest initial public offering (IPO) ever in the Bahamas with the IPO of Commonwealth Brewery, a Heineken subsidiary.