Skip to main content

The Caribbean Development Portal

From the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC)
Subregional Headquarters for the Caribbean
Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago

Home

Main menu

  • Home
  • Countries
  • Topics
  • Catalogue of Services

Report of ECLAC's Second Expert Group Meeting on Digital Currency in the Caribbean

Consideration of opportunities and risks associated with the advent of digital currency technology in the region

 

Download PDF

Source: UN ECLAC

Year: 2015

This expert group meeting continued the work of the first such meeting held to review a study on the “Opportunities and risks associated with the advent of digital currency in the Caribbean.” Experts in the group recommended the following points as meriting special consideration for further discussion in the study’s final draft:

(a) There has been reluctance on the part of regulators in Caribbean countries to engage on this issue, and to engage with digital currency companies interested in doing business in the region. Should this lack of engagement continue, digital currency companies would likely begin offering services in the region without first obtaining regulatory approval. This represents a risk to the companies, regulatory regimes, and public interest.

(b) Many tools are already in place that could aid governments and central banks in providing appropriate national frameworks for regulatory supervision of the digital currency industry. Tools also exist that can aid law enforcement in tracing the usage of digital currency as part of criminal investigations. There needs to be a broader awareness of how these tools may be used, with technical and legal assistance made available from the international community to countries seeking to use them.

(c) There remains a significant level of distrust in the region concerning digital currency, on the part of both governments and the population. This reservation exists, in part, because of a number of well-known cases involving the use of Bitcoin for criminal purposes. At times this negative view has overshadowed consideration of the potential benefits of the technology. The digital currency industry will need to build confidence within the member States by supporting regulators and law enforcement, and by educating policymakers and the public on the value of adopting digital currency-based systems.

Regional Cooperation
Electronic Funds Transfer
Electronic Commerce
Economic Policy
Internet
Information and Communication Technologies (ICT)
Financial Services
Development Strategy
Information Society
Small Island Developing States (SIDS)

Related content

Regional Cooperation  •  Electronic Funds Transfer  •  Electronic Commerce

Digital Currency in the Caribbean

Report of the ECLAC expert group meeting on opportunities and risks to the region associated with the advent of digital currency technology

Regional Cooperation  •  Electronic Funds Transfer  •  ICTs

Opportunities and risks associated with the advent of digital currency in the Caribbean

Studies and Perspectives – ECLAC Subregional Headquarters for The Caribbean

International Cooperation  •  Internet  •  Information Society

World Development Report 2016

Digital Dividends

Financial Services  •  Governance  •  ICTs

Prospects for blockchain-based settlement frameworks as a resolution to the threat of de-risking to Caribbean financial systems

ECLAC Policy Brief

Financial Services  •  Governance  •  ICTs

What you need to know about De-Risking

An ECLAC Infographic

Trinidad and Tobago  •  ICTs  •  National Plans

fastforward II : Trinidad and Tobago’s Draft National ICT Plan 2017 – 2021

Empowered People. Competitive Businesses. Transformational Government.

 
Anguilla
Antigua and Barbuda
Aruba
Bahamas
Barbados
Belize
Bermuda
British Virgin Islands
Cayman Islands
Cuba
Curaçao
Dominica
Dominican Republic
Grenada
Guadeloupe
Guyana
Haiti
Jamaica
Martinique
Montserrat
Puerto Rico
Saint Kitts and Nevis
Saint Lucia
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Sint Maarten
Suriname
Trinidad and Tobago
Turks and Caicos Islands
United States Virgin Islands

DISCLAIMER: Some resources listed and/or hyperlinked on this page may be from individuals, organisations and entities other than the United Nations and are provided for information purposes only. The hyperlinking of outside resources is not an endorsement by the United Nations of the views expressed therein nor does the United Nations have control over the content or accuracy of information provided. No editorial comment is implied by the omission of a resource or website.

Log in
  • Contact webmaster
  • Other ECLAC contacts
  • Copyright
  • Terms and conditions