| ECCB | 1 |
| 26-27 March 2026 | 1 |
| ECCB Headquarters | 1 |
| Bird Rock, St Kitts | 1 |
| COMMUNICATIONS WORKSHOP | 1 |
| FOR ECCU MEDIA PRACTITIONERS | 1 |
| THE FUTURE OF PAYMENTS IN THE ECCU | 96 |
| ECCB COMMUNICATION WORKSHOP FOR MEDIA PRACTITIONERS | 96 |
| 26 March 2026 | 96 |
| Sharmyn Powell, Director Payments Modernization and Financial Inclusion Unit Eastern Caribbean Central Bank | 96 |
| Roadmap | 98 |
| Overview | 98 |
| Evolution of Payments in the ECCU | 98 |
| Summary of Achievements | 98 |
| Remaining Gaps in the ECCU payments landscape | 98 |
| What‘s Next for Payments in the ECCU? | 98 |
| Closing Thoughts | 98 |
| Overview | 100 |
| The ECCU payment ecosystem has gone through various transitions and reflects a deliberate shift from manual to digital operations. | 100 |
| The modernisation efforts have been driven by the ECCB in collaboration with regional stakeholders. | 100 |
| Each milestone along the way builds on the previous enhancements and all are part of the overall objective to create a stronger, faster and more inclusive payment ecosystem. | 100 |
| Relentless Focus... Amplified Impact! | 100 |
| Evolution of Payments in the ECCU | 102 |
| Pre-2010 | 102 |
| Manual, paper-based processes | 102 |
| 2011 | 102 |
| ECACHSI established | 102 |
| 2014 | 102 |
| ECACH launched | 102 |
| Relentless Focus... Amplified Impact! | 102 |
| Evolution of Payments in the ECCU | 104 |
| 2015 | 104 |
| 2017 | 104 |
| 2019 - 2024 | 104 |
| Legislative enhancements and modernisation | 104 |
| Relentless Focus... Amplified Impact! | 104 |
| Performance Statistics | 106 |
| Transaction volumes processed through ECACH increased from approximately 5 million in 2016 to nearly 7 million in 2025. | 106 |
| In 2025, the total value of transactions processed through ECACH exceeded XCD 32 billion. | 106 |
| Importantly, in 2025, the volume of EFT transactions surpassed cheque volumes in the ECCU. | 106 |
| Relentless Focus... Amplified Impact! | 106 |
| Summary of Achievements | 108 |
| Modern Automated Clearing House (ACH) infrastructure | 108 |
| Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) functionality | 108 |
| Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) pilot project implemented in all ECCU countries | 108 |
| Harmonised legislation | 108 |
| Progress towards a Fintech-ready ecosystem | 108 |
| Greater financial inclusion | 108 |
| Relentless Focus... Amplified Impact! | 108 |
| Limited interoperability | 110 |
| Remaining Gaps in ECCU Payments Landcape | 110 |
| Varying levels of digital adoption | 110 |
| Cross-border payment ‘pain points’ | 110 |
| Resilience and redundancy challenges | 110 |
| Fintech integration | 110 |
| Regulatory implementation still in progress | 110 |
| What’s Next for Payments in the ECCU? | 112 |
| Full harmonisation of payment legislation across the ECCU | 112 |
| The development and implementation of an ECCU Fast Payment System (FPS) | 112 |
| Participation in CARICOM Payment System and Settlement (CAPSS) pilot project. | 112 |
| Relentless Focus... Amplified Impact! | 112 |
| ECCU Fast Payments System (FPS) | 114 |
| Features: | 114 |
| Real time payment across the ECCU | 114 |
| 24/7 availability | 114 |
| Interoperability | 114 |
| Reduced cost | 114 |
| Expanded coverage to include digital wallets and mobile payments | 114 |
| Relentless Focus... Amplified Impact! | 114 |
| ECCU Fast Payments System (FPS) | 116 |
| Benefits: | 116 |
| Reduced instances of liquidity challenges | 116 |
| Lower transaction costs | 116 |
| Reduction in the use of and reliance on cash and cheques | 116 |
| Strengthened integration across the region | 116 |
| Relentless Focus... Amplified Impact! | 116 |
| CARICOM Payments and Settlement System (CAPSS) Pilot | 118 |
| Objectives: | 118 |
| Enable faster and more affordable cross-border payments within CARICOM | 118 |
| Improve settlement efficiency | 118 |
| Strengthen regional financial integration | 118 |
| Precursor to a regional Real-time Gross Settlement (RTGS) system | 118 |
| Relentless Focus... Amplified Impact! | 118 |
| CARICOM Payments and Settlement System (CAPSS) Pilot | 120 |
| Benefits: | 120 |
| Addresses the existing gaps in cross-border payments and interoperability | 120 |
| Supports trade, remittances and economic mobility across CARICOM | 120 |
| The ECCU is better able to participate in future enhancements in the payments space across CARICOM | 120 |
| Relentless Focus... Amplified Impact! | 120 |
| GAPS | 122 |
| Payments Modernisation in Action | 122 |
| FPS | 122 |
| CAPSS | 122 |
| FUTURE STATE | 122 |
| Closing Thoughts | 124 |
| There has been significant progress in the advancement of the payments ecosystem | 124 |
| Notwithstanding the achievements, each one building on the earlier progress, some gaps remain | 124 |
| The ECCB continues its modernisation efforts to address issues related to interoperability, resilience and cross-border efficiency | 124 |
| The ECCU is on the verge of the next phase of innovation to stay apace with global developments | 124 |
| “The payments system should work for all except illicit actors” ~ Timothy N.J. Antoine, Governor - ECCB | 124 |
| Relentless Focus... Amplified Impact! | 124 |
| THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION | 126 |
| www.eccb-centralbank.org | 126 |
| 869-465-8954 | 126 |
| PO Box 89, Bird Rock, Basseterre, Saint Kitts | 126 |
| PMFIU@eccb-centralbank.org | 126 |
| From Data to Dialogue: Telling the Story Behind the NumbersDr. Leah SahelyECCU Media Houses’ Workshop27 March 2026 | 188 |
| Slide Number 2 | 190 |
| The Reality of Financial/Economic Communication Today | 192 |
| The Audience Starts with Basic Understanding | 194 |
| Unexplained Data Creates a Trust Void | 196 |
| You Are Not Just a Reporter | 198 |
| The Illusion of Understanding | 200 |
| Simplification Requires Translating Maths into Reality | 202 |
| The Translation Pipeline | 204 |
| The Pipeline in Action | 206 |
| Four Questions to Ask Before Publishing | 208 |
| The Complete Master Translation Toolkit | 210 |
| You Shape Public Understanding | 212 |
| Slide Number 14 | 214 |