The Barbados Cooperative and Credit Union League is celebrating two major breakthroughs.
During its annual general meeting recently at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre, Two Mile Hill, St Michael, president Kemar Cumberbatch said the changes had come about after years of advocacy.
“Let’s start with the first win, one that speaks directly to the heart of our daily operations – the expansion of the FSC’s (Financial Services Commission) exemption regime. For years, we’ve pushed for a more enabling regulatory environment, one that recognises our sector’s maturity, governance and accountability, and this year we have achieved that breakthrough,” he reported.
“These new exemptions mean members can now join more than one credit union without prior approval from their existing credit union. Staff and elected officials can apply for loans through the ordinary process; there is no need now for a special committee or an extra layer of bureaucracy. Larger credit unions, those with assets over $35 million and structured management, can delegate bank signatory authority to management with the appropriate level of oversight.
“These are not just administrative tweaks. These changes cut the red tape, empower boards and management and reflect the FSC’s confidence in our governance maturity. This is a kind of regulatory reform the league has been advocating for – practical, proportionate and progressive,” he added.
The second “win” Cumberbatch identified was even longer in coming, that of deposit insurance.
“This has been more than ten to 15 years in the making, and it is a historic step. Deposit insurance is not about individual people; it is about, and it is for, each and every one of our depositors. It is about the people, the members, the affiliates, protecting their savings, the savings of hard-working Barbadians who, as of June 2025, had deposited more than $2.19 billion in financial cooperatives.
“These very substantial sums of money would have been earned by the average Barbadian and they represent the entire life savings of some of our credit union members. We are therefore thrilled that members can soon rest assured that this new layer of security will be there for their savings. Most important, the framework will have the backing and the full faith of the Government of Barbados,” he said.
Cumberbatch, who is also president of the City of Bridgetown Credit Union, said deposit insurance was not an imposition but the result of years of lobbying and consultative work with credit union affiliates, the Ministry of Finance, the FSC and the Deposit Insurance Corporation. Now in the final stages, with the legislation being drafted and expected to come on stream from next year, he said it meant credit unions would need to meet standards in capital adequacy, profitability and liquidity.
“This is therefore not about creating burdens for credit unions but about building strong, responsible institutions that members can trust. These standards are not meant to exclude anyone, they are meant to protect everyone – especially our members.”
Looking ahead, he said the league will continue to advocate for policies which protect members and promote growth. He said they had rolled out new training regimes, supported digital transformation and continued to advocate for reforms to the Cooperative Societies Act, among other initiatives.
“Our goal remains clear, my friends: a stable, inclusive and resilient credit union movement that protects every member’s savings and strengthens public confidence in cooperative finance. So yes, what didn’t happen in a year happened in a day, but it didn’t happen by accident. It happened through hard work, collaboration and belief in what this movement stands for and who it represents,” he said.
“. . . This has been a year of wins, but more importantly, it has been a year of momentum.”
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