Governor of the Central Bank of The Bahamas John Rolle yesterday outlined how the country’s banking sector has contracted due to global pressures and shared details of the Central Bank’s strategic plan to boost growth in the industry.

Addressing the Association of International Banks & Trust Companies’ (AIBT) Regulators Forum, held at the Baha Mar conference centre, Rolle said around 4,000 people were currently employed in The Bahamas’ banking sector – compared to close to 5,000 in 2000. “We could be getting so much more out of the sector”, he said, highlighting obstacles to growth such as stricter global regulatory standards alongside de-risking and the resulting loss of correspondent banking relationships.

The Central Bank’s strategic plan for 2016-2020 aims to address these concerns, according to Rolle, who said its primary goals are to grow and preserve the international segment of the industry, as well as safeguarding the stability of the domestic market.

The plan will focus on continuing to upgrade the supervisory framework in line with international standards, strengthening the AML regime and examining issues around correspondent banking in preparation for the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) Financial Sector Assessment Programme, which is expected to make a judgement on The Bahamas’ fiscal performance in 2018.

“We need to look at getting more returns from the offshore sector to help keep the sector stable and help it to flourish,” said Rolle. “The jurisdiction has to continue to stay visibly engaged.”

cmorris@dupuch.com