25 July 2019, Basseterre, St Kitts and Nevis – The Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB) launched the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union (ECCU) Public Debt and Market Information Web Portal during a regional media conference held on 23 July at the ECCB Headquarters, Basseterre, St Kitts and Nevis. 

This initiative, an important deliverable in the ECCB Strategic Plan 2017-2021, marked another milestone in the Bank’s ongoing enterprise to build out a financial market infrastructure within the ECCU that is fit for a modern, strong and diversified financial system.

In collaboration with Member Governments and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the ECCB developed the Public Debt and Market Information Web Portal out of a desire to ensure that the public has accurate and timely information available to make informed decisions. Potential users include:

• an investor considering the purchase of government security;
• a credit rating agency assessing the creditworthiness of a government;
• a regional or international financial institution undertaking surveillance;
• academics and students carrying out research; and
• Media practitioners seeking current and accurate information from a credible source.

Another critical objective of this initiative is to broaden the investor base for the Regional Government Securities Market (RGSM), a major component of the Eastern Caribbean Securities Market. 

The ECCB recognises that information is a public good and that the dissemination of relevant and timely information is an essential element in the transformation of the ECCU.

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About the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank - The Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB) was established in October 1983. The ECCB is the Monetary Authority for: Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Commonwealth of Dominica, Grenada, Montserrat, St Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia and St Vincent and the Grenadines.

Media Contact: Ingrid O’Loughlin, Senior Director, Corporate Relations Department

Phone: (869) 465-2537 | Fax: (869) 465-9562

E-mail: info@eccb-centralbank.org | Website: www.eccb-centralbank.org

Basseterre, St Kitts and Nevis, 28 June 2019 - The Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB) has recorded a net profit of $32.7 million for the 2018-2019 financial year.

This third consecutive year of profit exceeds last year’s profit by $21.9 million or 204.0 per cent. The Bank’s Annual Report and Statement of Accounts for the financial year ended 31 March 2019, which was published on 28 June, indicates that the profit was due primarily to an increase in interest income on foreign reserve assets.

Governor of the ECCB, Timothy N. J. Antoine said, “The new financial year 2019/2020 will see us forging ahead with on going and new initiatives under the Strategic Plan with a focus on continuing our modernisation thrust.” 

During the new financial year, the ECCB will continue to implement a number of programmes as set out in its 2017-2021 Strategic Plan including:

1. Implement the Digital Currency Pilot Project
2. Enhance security and durability of EC notes through the issue of polymer notes
3. Licence a credit bureau operator for the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union
4. Deploy the ECCU Public Debt and market Information webpages
5. Support the development of a Digital Economy Project for the ECCU in collaboration with the World Bank; and
6. Complete Phases I and II of the Greening of the ECCB Campus Project.

The ECCB 2018-2019 Annual Report is available on the Bank’s website.

Independent Auditors' Report and Financial Statements

Full Annual Report and Statement of Accounts

Governor's Foreword - ECCB Annual Report 2018/2019 - Video | Text

Media Contact: Ingrid O’Loughlin, Senior Director, Corporate Relations Department

Phone: (869) 465-2537 | Fax: (869) 465-9562

E-mail: info@eccb-centralbank.org | Website: www.eccb-centralbank.org

25 June 2019, Basseterre, St Kitts and Nevis - The Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB) has engaged the services of a marketing and strategic communication firm to conduct an assessment of its communication, public education and community outreach programmes.

(Please click this link to participate in the survey: https://forms.gle/niiV4fWddx9qBSS66)

Right Angle Imaging, based in Saint Lucia, is conducting the assessment which targets citizens and residents of the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union aged 14 – 60.  The survey seeks to:

1. measure the target audience’s level of awareness of and attitude, perception and  behaviour towards the ECCB; 
2. assess the reach and impact of the Bank’s communication, public education  and community outreach initiatives; 
3. assess the target audience’s information needs and media habits;  
4. determine target audience’s interest in receiving information on the role, function and work of the Bank; and
5. obtain information on how the ECCB could improve its programmes and engagement with the public, including the media.

The assessment will include the administration of an online and face-to-face questionnaire, interviews and focus groups. The results will guide the development of a comprehensive communication strategy and inform the development of strategies to increase the effectiveness of the Bank’s public education, community outreach and communication programmes. It will also provide information to help to guide the work of the Bank and the development of programmes to better serve the people of the region.

Right Angle Imaging has been the provider of strategic communication, research, media and social marketing services in the Eastern Caribbean since 1999. Its clientele includes a diverse mix of public, private sector and not-for-profit agencies.

Please click this link to participate in the survey: https://forms.gle/niiV4fWddx9qBSS66

Media Contact: Ingrid O’Loughlin, Senior Director, Corporate Relations Department

Phone: (869) 465-2537 | Fax: (869) 465-9562

E-mail: info@eccb-centralbank.org | Website: www.eccb-centralbank.org

14 June 2019, Basseterre, St Kitts and Nevis – Five netball teams from across the OECS will compete for the first Gloria Ballantyne Championship Trophy in the inaugural OECS/ECCB International Netball Series, which will be held in St Vincent and the Grenadines from
15 – 21 June.

The Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB), in collaboration with the OECS Commission, the Caribbean Netball Association and the St Vincent and the Grenadines Netball Association, will host the OECS/ECCB International Netball Series under the theme: Excellence and Empowerment Through Sports.  This Series replaces the OECS/ECCB Under-23 Netball tournament, which the ECCB sponsored from 1991-2018.

The ECCB’s sponsorship of the OECS/ECCB International Netball Series demonstrates the Bank’s vision of fostering regional integration and its commitment to the overall development and empowerment of the region’s women through sports.

Governor of the ECCB, Timothy N. J. Antoine said: “The ECCB remains fully committed to the development of our young women through the sport of netball. After 28 years of sponsorship, our Bank is pleased to help take the sport to a higher level through enhanced support for the launch of the International Netball Series.” 

The OECS/ECCB International Netball Series will provide the participating teams with the opportunity to play international netball matches and gain world netball ranking. It will also highlight elite netballers in the OECS on the international platform and establish pathways for OECS netballers to enhance their competence in the sport.

The Series will commence with the Official Opening Ceremony on 15 June, following which teams Antigua and Barbuda, the Commonwealth of Dominica, Grenada, Saint Lucia and St Vincent and the Grenadines will compete for netball supremacy at the Arnos Vale Sporting Complex. The championship trophy is named in honour of Gloria Ballantyne of St Vincent and the Grenadines, who has been influential in regional netball for several decades.

The netballers will also participate in a developmental session on the theme: Charting a Course: A Financial Guide for Women. Villette Browne, Managing Director of the KP Group of companies in St Vincent and the Grenadines, will conduct the session. They will also have the opportunity to engage in discussion with the netball officials about the future of the sport in the region.

Visit the ECCB Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/ECCBConnects/) for daily updates on the matches throughout the tournament.

Click here to view promo

Media Contact: Ingrid O’Loughlin, Senior Director, Corporate Relations Department

Phone: (869) 465-2537 | Fax: (869) 465-9562

E-mail: info@eccb-centralbank.org | Website: www.eccb-centralbank.org

"Fellow citizens and residents of the ECCU, your new notes are considerably better hence the tagline of our public education campaign: cleaner, safer, stronger.  Moreover, they are aesthetically pleasing.  Above all, they are a symbol of regional accomplishment"

Introduction

As always, I am delighted to be in the Isle of Spice. Today, I am especially pleased, to mark this visit with the launch of our highly anticipated EC polymer notes.

Before I continue with my brief remarks, I hereby confirm that our EC dollar is strong. As of Friday, 24 May 2019, the backing ratio was 98.4 per cent.  More importantly, our foreign reserves continue to grow and now total US$1.75 billion.

As we celebrate the strength of our currency, let me be very clear.  The ultimate defense for our strong EC dollar is our production. It is through the production of goods and especially services (increasingly higher up the value chain) that we will earn our way in the world; enhance our capacity to finance and determine our development scope and trajectory; reduce public debt and deliver shared prosperity for the citizens of the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union (ECCU).

Today marks another milestone in the ECCB’s Strategic Plan 2017-2021, styled Transforming the ECCU Together.  As an ECCU citizen or resident, if you are not familiar with this Plan, I invite you to visit our website (www.eccb-centralbank.org); familiarise yourself with the Plan; and become an implementation partner.

Strategic Plan implementation aside, I confess my relief to finally settle a question that has been posed to me not only here in Grenada, but throughout the Currency Union: when will we see EC notes that bear the signature of the current Governor?

Our Motivation

Why are we moving from paper to polymer? Simply put, to enhance the security and usability of our EC notes.

It is amazing to observe how commerce, banking and money have evolved over the past 3,000 years. From barter to bitcoin; private money to central bank money and, now, crypto assets.   Notwithstanding this long history, the fundamentals of money have not changed.  Stripped to its core, money is based on trust and has three basic characteristics: unit of account, store of value and medium of exchange.

To maintain trust and to stay ahead of counterfeiters, our Central Bank has a duty of care, indeed an obligation, to continually upgrade our notes. But our motivation is also personal.

On several occasions, I have had fishermen and vendors lament to me, their inability to get value for their notes after they were soiled or torn.  These stories have affected me.  I have asked myself how can our Central Bank help ensure that these hardworking folks get full value for their hard-earned money?  I believe polymer will greatly ease this hardship.

Our Decision

In making our recommendation to the Monetary Council, the ECCB considered the following options:

1. Cotton Paper;
2. Cotton/Polymer Combination;
3. Endurance High Durability Paper; and
4. Polymer

From an economic standpoint, polymer notes are more cost-effective than paper. Although polymer notes are more expensive to produce upfront, their extended lifespan means that the notes are replaced less often.  Consequently, there will be a reduction in transportation and handling costs thus reducing the overall cost of cash for the ECCB, commercial banks and credit unions.

As part of our due diligence, the ECCB consulted with colleagues from the Bank of England, the Bank of Scotland and the Bank of Canada on their experiences with changing from paper to polymer.

Compared to paper notes, polymer notes are:

• Cleaner: resistant to dirt and moisture;
• More secure: they have advanced security features which make them harder to counterfeit;
• More durable: they last at least, three times longer; and
• More environmentally friendly.

Consequently, fisherfolks, vendors and the people of the ECCU will soon have, in their hands, bank notes that are cleaner, safer and stronger.

The switch to polymer necessitated some changes to the designs of the notes in respect of technical and security specifications.  However, even with these new design elements, we were careful to maintain a degree of familiarity for ease of use.  Very importantly, we have incorporated a feature (raised bumps) to make it easy for the blind and visually impaired to handle their money and their business.  At this juncture, I wish to recognise the advocacy of John Rullow, who a decade ago, approached the Ministry of Finance in Grenada and made an appeal for features that catered for the blind and visually impaired.

Our Launch

Today, we unveil the first note in the EC family of notes – the EC$50. This new note bears the image of our late, great Governor, the Honourable Sir K Dwight Venner. Once again, I hail the colossal contribution of my illustrious predecessor. We are particularly pleased that Lady Venner has been able to join us for this special occasion.

We wish to publicly thank Lady Venner and her family for their enormous sacrifice and support in sharing Sir Dwight with the people of the Currency Union, as Governor, for more than quarter of a century.

Fellow citizens and residents, the circulation of the new notes will be phased. As unfit paper notes are returned to the Central Bank and our current inventory of paper notes is depleted, they will be replaced by polymer notes.  Therefore, as a practical matter, the public ought to expect that both paper and polymer notes will be in circulation at the same time. They are both legal tender.

In respect of the rollout, our current projection is: the $100, $20 and $10 notes will be issued around September of this year and the $5 note around September of next year.  

Conclusion

In conclusion, today is, indeed, a happy occasion for our Currency Union.

I wish now to acknowledge the contribution of De La Rue with whom the ECCB has a long-term service agreement.  Leveraging its global experience with polymer, De La Rue has been invaluable throughout this process.

I thank my ECCB colleagues who have contributed to this Project and today’s launch including Maria Cumberbatch, immediate past Director of the Currency Management Department, Rosbert Humphrey, our current Director, our Polymer Working Group and our team from the Corporate Relations Department including Shermalon Kirby among others.  I also thank our team in Grenada: Resident Representative, Linda Felix-Berkeley and Senior Administrative Officer, Valene Streete.

I also wish to thank the Monetary Council and our Board of Directors, both of whom have been very supportive of this Project from the outset.

Fellow citizens and residents of the ECCU, your new notes are considerably better hence the tagline of our public education campaign: cleaner, safer, stronger.  Moreover, they are aesthetically pleasing.  Above all, they are a symbol of regional accomplishment.

Let us enjoy them.

I thank you.

Click here to download full text of this statement.

Media Contact: Ingrid O’Loughlin, Senior Director, Corporate Relations Department

Phone: (869) 465-2537 | Fax: (869) 465-9562

E-mail: info@eccb-centralbank.org | Website: www.eccb-centralbank.org

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