ECCB Governor predicts 3 per cent growth

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The Governor of the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB) is predicting growth of 3 per cent for the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union (ECCU). Timothy Antoine made the announcement in his 2018 Christmas message, released recently.
Antoine, who assumed the position two years ago, said despite some challenges experienced, 2018 proved to be a relatively good one for the ECCB and the ECCU.
“Following the growth setback last year, the ECCU recovered and is projected to grow by about 3 per cent.  Furthermore, there has been a reduction in unemployment in some member countries. The ECCB continues to make significant strides with the implementation of our strategic plan,” Antione said.
He also added that, “Amid all of our hard work to preserve monetary and financial stability and promote growth and development, there were several memorable moments including the celebration of our 35th anniversary, our global award [from] Global Markets, the hosting of the Intra Regional Central Bank Games, the basketball team that emerged as champions of the St Kitts Amateur Basketball Association A-Division League, and Christmas Lighting of the ECCB Campus.”
The governor also stated that in looking ahead to 2019, an exciting year beckons, as several strategic initiatives are set come to fruition. These include the credit bureau, the partial credit guarantee scheme, the rollout of their FinTech pilot, and their new bank notes.
Meanwhile, Sir K Dwight Venner (the deceased former govenor of the ECCB) will be memorialised on the EC $50 note when the bank releases its new-look notes for 2019. Sir Dwight, who served as governor for 26 years, passed away in 2016.
The material currently used to produce the EC dollar notes will also be changed, making for a more durable currency.
According to the Central Bank, other features will include the notes being lateral instead of horizontal, the security features will also be enhanced to include a holographic window on the $20, $50 and $100 notes, which would make them difficult to replicate.
The holographic window will also appear on the $5 and $10 notes on a smaller scale.

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