Pan Caribbean digital payment system Carib$ successfully showcased its first live transfer recently between companies in Barbados, Trinidad & Tobago and St Vincent and the Grenadines.

Piloted by Cayman-based fintech company CaribCoin, the historic transaction took place late last month during the Connect Caribe Stakeholder Consultation Summit held at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre in Bridgetown, Barbados.

Carib$, a stablecoin or kind of cryptocurrency, is being rolled out as a digital complementary currency which seeks to facilitate quick, affordable and seamless cross-border transfers within the Caribbean. Operating alongside other national currencies, Carib$ aims to bridge the region’s economies as it create new markets for businesses while becoming a catalyst for Caricom’s 25 by 2025 initiative.

The transfer, which was conducted by subsidiaries of Goddard Enterprises Limited (GEL), saw Allied Caterers from Trinidad and Tobago and Goddard Catering Group from Barbados successfully making transfers to Coreas Hazells Inc in St Vincent and the Grenadines in a transaction to purchase dasheen. The live transfer, which is said to have been done in less than a minute, proves to be more efficient when compared to other transfers which could take days or even weeks utilising similar mechanisms for cross-border transfers.

“The transfer demonstrated how this Caribbean innovation can make decades-old non-tariff barriers to regional trade disappear and marked a significant step towards realising a digital Caricom Single Market and Economy (CSME),” founder and chief system architect Dr Jan Schröder said.

Schröder, during the launch of a pilot last year, had said that achieving 10 per cent of regional trade using Carib$ will ensure profitability for the initiative.

Regional stakeholders and some members of the currency’s advisory board, who have long yearned for increased inter-Caribbean trade, which now accounts for little over 19 per cent of total trade, is of the view that Carib$’s potential will be great, especially since as an asset-backed complementary currency, it was designed to maintain a stable value. They have also touted it as a good way to eliminate the Caribbean’s current heavy reliance on foreign correspondent banks and limited US dollar liquidity.

“Carib$ enhances financial inclusion by providing accessible digital financial services thus empowering underserved communities. By embracing this initiative, we are not only modernising our financial infrastructure but also positioning the Caribbean as a leader in digital innovation,” commented secretary general of the Caribbean Telecommunications Union (CTU) Rodney Taylor.

“CaribCoin’s team lead by Dr Schröder, has my full support because over the past few months they’ve demonstrated grit and dedication to the project and the ability to work and implement agile and lean methodologies in a way that drives true impact,” Anthony Abed, director of regional currency solutions company EconUCC added.

For CEO of the Caricom Private Sector Organization (CPSO) Dr Patrick Antoine, who referenced a 2017 study which pointed to foreign exchange as being the one of the most significant impediments to trade among Caribbean countries, he maintained the belief that the region’s relationship with Carib$ and CaribCoin comes as a form of ‘medicine’ to established ‘pain points’, especially for trade.

In pushing for the complementary currency to become a widely used medium for cross-border transfers, he invited CaribCoin to participate in the upcoming 18th Caribbean Week of Agriculture expected to get underway on October 7-11 in St Vincent and the Grenadines under the theme ‘Climate Smart Agriculture for a Sustainable Future’.