ECCB 2025-2026 Annual Report

EASTERN CARIBBEAN CENTRAL BANK ANNUAL REPORT 2025 - 2026

Legislative Agenda

reflects the change. Amendments to AML/CFT Legislation

97 th Meeting, after numerous consultations with stakeholders and governments, approved the Virtual Asset Business Bill. The Bill was submitted to the member countries in November 2020 for enactment while the Virtual Asset Business Regulations were submitted in December 2023. To date, the Bill has been passed by all Member Countries except Anguilla. The Regulations have been issued in all Member Countries except Anguilla and Saint Christopher (St Kitts) and Nevis. Legislative Framework for the Establishment of the Eastern Caribbean Financial Standards Board The Monetary Council of the ECCB approved an optimal regulatory framework to supplement the current regulatory arrangements within the ECCU, to support financial integration and strengthen financial stability in the region. This framework includes the establishment of an Eastern Caribbean Financial Standards Board (ECFSB) to remove regulatory gaps in the financial sector, reduce the scope for regulatory arbitrage and enhance the regulation of multi-jurisdictional firms and financial conglomerates. The ECFSB will be responsible for designing and issuing standards for regulation of the non bank financial sector across the eight member jurisdictions of the ECCU. The Bank, in collaboration with the legislative drafting consultant, engaged in intensive stakeholder consultations in the member Anguilla has passed its own Digital Asset Business Act 2023 to govern the sector.

In an effort to deal with the issue of de-risking, the Monetary Council at its 85 th Meeting held on 22 July 2016, took the decision to recommend to member governments that the ECCB should assume supervisory authority for anti-money laundering and combatting the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) for financial institutions licensed under the Banking Act. The Central Bank sought the cooperation of the Ministries of Finance and the Attorneys General in coordinating a comprehensive review of the AML/ CFT legislation in each member country with a view to recommending the appropriate amendments to address this matter. Antigua and Barbuda, the Commonwealth of Dominica, Grenada, Montserrat and Saint Lucia have enacted the amendments. Discussions are ongoing with the remaining member countries on the enactment of the amendments to their AML/ CFT Legislation. This initiative is not relevant to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines as under its Anti Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing Regulations issued under the Proceeds of Crimes Act 2013 the Central Bank was already named as the AML/CFT supervisory authority. Virtual Asset Business legislation The Central Bank launched a project for the development of a legislative framework for the regulation of virtual assets and virtual asset service providers in the ECCU in November 2018 to address the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Recommendation 15. The Monetary Council at its

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