Ministry of Financial Services and Cayman Islands Monetary Authority officials recently held a second round of meetings in Washington DC, with key US Congressional staff, regulators and stakeholders, about bank de-risking from the Caribbean perspective; and then contributed to Financial Stability Board discussions on an action plan to address the issue.
'It's important to continue these talks because de-risking is still creating unintended, detrimental effects globally. We had our own taste of it when it disrupted our money services business in 2015, and the people of Cayman certainly remember their relief when the issue was resolved,' said Minister of Financial Services Wayne Panton.
He noted that Cayman's banking sector fully supports the Ministry's efforts to influence broader developments in de-risking by engaging with stakeholders internationally.
In DC, Cayman's delegation comprised Department of Financial Services Senior Legislative Policy Advisor André Ebanks; and CIMA's Deputy Managing Director (Supervision) Anna McLean and Policy Division Head Justine Plenkiewicz.
During the early December visit, the delegation met representatives of the US Department of State; the World Bank, including US Executive Director for the World Bank Group, the Hon. Matt McGuire; senior Democratic staff for the House of Representatives Committee on Financial Services; senior staff for the Hon. Senator Pat Toomey (R-PA), Chairman for the Hon. Senate Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Protection; and representatives of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.
On 12 December in Nassau, Bahamas, CIMA's Managing Director Cindy Scotland and Mr Ebanks attended the Financial Stability Board's Regional Consultative Group for the Americas meeting. CIMA, which regulates Cayman's financial services industry, is a member of the consultative group.
During the meeting, Mrs Scotland and Mr Ebanks contributed to the FSB's discussions on the impact of reductions in correspondent banking relationships in the Americas.
Mr Ebanks said that overall, the DC and FSB discussions were open and informative.
'Bank de-risking was clearly important to meeting participants, and as a result it's gaining momentum as a focus area', he said.
Minister Panton said that Government will continue supporting international efforts to resolve the unintended effects of de-risking.
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