The ECCB wants banks to make it easier to open an account

Persons across the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union (ECCU), which comprises
the eight countries that use the EC Dollar, are still encountering difficulties in
opening a bank and account and the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB) says
it will lead the way to make the process easier.
Speaking at an ECCU press conference on Monday where the results of a financial
literacy and inclusion survey were revealed, ECCB Governor, Timothy Antoine,
says he is not happy with the current state of affairs.
“The survey found that for some people who do not have a bank account, one of
the reasons is that it is too difficult to open an account and on that score, I just want
to make it clear what the position of the central bank is. We are now working with
our licensed financial institutions to ease the requirements to open a bank account
without doing violence to our obligations to fight money-laundering and financial
crimes. We believe with a proper understanding of the law and a risk-based
approach to financial integrity, we can accomplish that,” he stated.
The Governor saw this as part of the financial literacy and inclusion effort now
being spearheaded by the bank to encounter more citizens of the ECCU to become
part of the financial system.
“We don’t want people to go back to using ‘under the mattress’ because they can’t
open an account. That defeats the purpose of the whole exercise. So we recognize
that this is an area where we can do something urgently,” he remarked.
Antoine revealed that officials of the ECCB and regulators in the ECCU met
recently where this matter was discussed. “We think we can do something about
this,” he declared.