Governor Thomas Macan Remarks at
the Opening of Banco Popular
Remarks by His Excellency Governor Thomas Macan
Opening of Banco Popular de Puerto Rico’s New Tortola Branch
Wickhams Cay I
Friday, 9 December, 2005
3:00 p.m.
I am grateful for the opportunity to say a few words this afternoon.
First to congratulate Valentino McBean and his Virgin Islands team on the completion of this splendid project. About two and a half years ago, many of us here today were sitting close to where we are now, under a tent. We were looking out onto a bare patch of
Wickhams Cay watching a team of senior politicians and bankers busy with shovels, cutting your first sod. One always wonders on those occasions how long it will be before the plan is turned into reality. It is that reality which we see today.
A fine building, constructed by BVI contractors, and designed by a BVI architect. A building that I hope we can all be proud of. One which sets a standard for others to follow. There is development going on in this part of
Wickhams Cay at the moment; there is much more to follow. Banco Popular have set a high standard which others need to emulate. This is the Virgin Islands’ front door for our visitors who arrive by cruise ship. Let us take pride in it, and ensure that it acts as a welcome, with the promise of more and better things to follow.
The BVI can also take pride in its success as an international financial centre. Banks have a crucial role to play in that success, and we can welcome the vote of confidence that Banco Popular has made here by investing in substantial premises. May the wisdom of your decision be reflected in the additional business that you attract.
That financial success has had a radical impact on life in these islands. It has enabled successive governments to engage in investment in infrastructure, physical and intellectual, for the benefit of all those who live here. The Lavity Stoutt Community College, the new airport, Government House if I may be allowed a personal interpolation, the proposed new
Hospital and High School. None would have been possible without the resources which international financial business has brought to these islands.
So that success in the world of international finance matters to every one of us. It has been hard earned, and it is fragile. To sustain it requires above all that our customers have confidence. Above all confidence in the BVI as a well-supervised jurisdiction, with up-to-date legislation and a fair and efficient court system for the resolution of disputes. Confidence that dodgy operators will be detected, and barred from further activity. Confidence that our institutions will look after those resources which are entrusted to them.
This confidence has been hard earned, and must be jealously guarded. It can all too easily be put in jeopardy or even lost by carelessness or inactivity. There are competitors who would gladly take business from us. There are others who, as the Chairman of the Financial Services Commission reminded us on Tuesday night, would much rather that we were not in business at all. It is up to each and every practitioner in the business to deny both groups the opportunity to move close to achieving their objectives.
The motto of the Virgin Islands is “vigilate”, “be watchful”. Few injunctions could be more appropriate for our financial sector. This watchfulness, and this determination must be at the forefront of the thinking of those who work in this new building, and all their colleagues in the world of finance. The BVI is currently seen as a desirable place to transact business. Many are working to keep it that way and develop additional business. It is up to all of us to sustain the reputation which underpins our success.
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