BASSETERRE, St Kitts — Governor of the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB), Timothy N. J. Antoine, says political support is critically important to the successful creation of a regional regulator for Citizenship by Investment (CBI) programs across five countries in the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union (ECCU).
ECCB Governor Timothy Antoine at the St Kitts and Nevis Investment Gateway Summit.Speaking at the St Kitts and Nevis Investment Gateway Summit this week, Governor Antoine said the ECCB is spearheading the initiative through an Interim Regulatory Commission (IRC), which was appointed by the five participating nations: Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, Saint Kitts and Nevis, and Saint Lucia to oversee the establishment of the regulator.
Once established, the regulator will be responsible for supervising, regulating and licensing all CBI programs in the region.
“I want to be very clear: we took a deliberate step. It required us to travel and engage in an intense schedule, but we did not want to draft [a legal framework] before we engaged you,” Governor Antoine said. “Our preparation has been enriched by what you have shared with us.”
He said consultations over the past three months involved governments, opposition leaders, local agents, developers, financial intelligence units, and banks. In addition, international partners such as the United States, the United Kingdom, and the European Union, along with regional Attorneys General, were also engaged in the process.
“We have now submitted our second draft to our heads — our Prime Ministers,” Governor Antoine said.
The IRC plans to share the draft with industry stakeholders this month for feedback, with the aim of finalizing it by the end of July and submitting the final version in early August.
“Our [the IRC’s] deliverables are a draft agreement and bill, which we have now submitted; a list of policy issues, which we have also submitted; and a risk assessment and protocols, which we are working on and will submit once finalized,” Governor Antoine added.
He also explained that the regulator would function under a single enabling law, similar to how the ECCU Banking Act applies across the Currency Union.
The regional regulator is expected to set and enforce common standards for due diligence, marketing, outsourcing, stakeholder engagement, and other key areas. These unified standards, Antoine said, would close legal loopholes, reduce unfair competition, and minimize regulatory arbitrage between the countries.
Governor Antoine emphasized the importance of government backing.
“We believe we have that support, and that has driven us as we have proceeded. The Heads asked us to do this and the Heads will take this to Parliament and enact before the end of the year,” he said.
