Clearer information, transparent fees and fair treatment for customers are at the heart of the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank’s new Office of Financial Conduct, launched Wednesday evening to strengthen consumer protection across the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union (ECCU).
ECCB Governor Timothy Antoine said financial institutions must look beyond balance sheets and put the people they serve first.
“Financial institutions do not serve numbers. They serve people,” he stressed.
The new office brings greater focus to how financial institutions treat customers, including whether services are accessible, fees and charges are transparent, and complaints are handled promptly and appropriately.
Antoine said consumers should understand the products and services they use, know what they cost and have a credible avenue to raise concerns.
“They should receive clear and accurate information. They should be treated fairly and respectfully. And when they believe something is wrong or has gone wrong, they should have a credible and accessible avenue through which their concerns can be heard and addressed,” he said.
Those expectations matter whether a customer is opening a first bank account, saving for a home, seeking business financing, navigating digital services or trying to recover from financial difficulties.
Antoine said each experience can strengthen—or weaken—confidence in the financial system.
For more than four decades, the ECCB has concentrated on monetary and financial stability. While that remains essential, the Governor said financially sound institutions are only part of the equation.
“It requires trust. Trust in our institutions, trust in our systems, and trust that when people engage with our financial system, they will be treated fairly and with dignity and respect,” he said.
He explained that the ECCB’s traditional prudential supervision examines whether financial institutions are adequately capitalised, manage risks properly and can meet their obligations. Market conduct supervision asks how those institutions treat the people they serve.
“In simple terms, prudential supervision asks whether the institution is sound; market conduct supervision asks whether people are treated fairly,” Antoine explained. “We need both.”
The Governor said consumer protection also helps widen economic opportunity.
“Consumer protection is not merely about protecting consumers from harm. It is about building confidence, widening opportunity and ensuring that finance fulfills its proper purpose, enabling people and businesses to participate, prosper and build a better future for themselves, their families and our region,” he said.
Antoine outlined three priorities: putting people first, ensuring consumer protection continues to evolve, and recognising that protecting customers is a shared responsibility.
The office fulfils a commitment in the ECCB’s strategic plan, “The Big Push: Collective Action for Shared Prosperity in the ECCU,” launched six months ago.
Its establishment followed the development of a framework, approval from the ECCU Monetary Council, and consultations and roadshows across the Currency Union involving financial institutions, consumers, civil society organisations, youth and community groups.
