A roundup of the latest ICT/technology news from across the Caribbean region for the period Monday 19 December to Sunday 25 December 2022.
Monday, 19 December 2021
Bran: ‘Don’t abandon’ digital assets on FTX
Bahamas – The Democratic National Alliance’s (DNA) former leader is urging The Bahamas not to “abandon” the digital assets industry in the wake of FTX’s implosion but instead promote the jurisdiction with “even more vigour”… more
‘FTX collapse nothing to do with The Bahamas’
Bahamas – PRIME Minister Phillip “Brave” Davis has once again insisted that the collapse of FTX has nothing to do with The Bahamas, saying “you don’t blame the jurisdiction, you blame the bad actors”… more
FTX provisional liquidators launch case website for stakeholder updates
Bahamas – FTX Bahamas’ joint provisional liquidators yesterday announced the launch a case website which will be used to keep stakeholders updated on the status of their work… more
FTX shows Bahamas can’t ‘live or die’ by one investor
Bahamas – Governance reformers are arguing that FTX’s implosion further reinforces that there is “no silver bullet to solve our economic growth issues coming out of Dorian and COVID-19”… more
FTX US and JPLs ‘working in good faith’ over data access
Bahamas – FTX US, the Securities Commission of The Bahamas (SCB) and the Bahamian-appointed joint provisional liquidators (JPLs), who are overseeing the winding up of FTX Digital Markets in The Bahamas, are “working in good faith” to reach a resolution over access to FTX’s data… more
Mitchell: FTX failure has no impact on foreign relations
Bahamas – The failure of The Bahamas-based FTX cryptocurrency exchange and the resultant fallout has had no impact on foreign relations between The Bahamas and the United States (US), Minister of Foreign Affairs Fred Mitchell insisted in an interview with Bloomberg on Friday, and stressed that there are distinct differences in the roles being played by the government, the Securities Commission and the court system in this country… more
PM on FTX: All countries face bad actors
Bahamas – The Bahamas cannot be blamed for the failings of cryptocurrency exchange FTX, Prime Minister Philip Davis said on Friday, explaining that all countries face “bad actors” and the United States has had colossal corporate failings as well… more
SBF back in court today
Bahamas – Sam Bankman-Fried, the disgraced founder of cryptocurrency exchange FTX, is expected to return to the Magistrate’s Court today and say that he is no longer fighting extradition to the United States (US), The Nassau Guardian understands… more
The Bahamas: FTX liquidators launch website to update stakeholders
Bahamas – Liquidators for the Bahamas-based FTX Digital Markets have set up a website to update persons, who are owed by the failed company… more
Virgin Islands’ four telecoms renew licences
British Virgin Islands – The territory’s four telecommunications providers all have recently renewed their unitary licences, allowing them to continue operating here for a second 15-year period subject to compliance assessments every five years, the Telecommunications Regulatory Commission announced on Dec. 12… more
DEREK SMITH: Don’t ignore risks with digital assets
Caribbean – According to the International Association of Compliance (ICA), “the global virtual assets regulatory landscape is a patchwork of differing approaches, reflecting, in turn, the cultural, political and social differences of many different jurisdictions”… more
Guyana to repeal its Cybercrime Act -Attorney General
Guyana – Having opposed the present Cybercrime Act when in opposition, the government says preparations are in the works to repeal it and replace it with a new Act based on UN guidelines… more
Over 250 graduate from Skills for the Future
Jamaica – On Tuesday, December 13, a virtual graduation ceremony was held for Skills for the Future pilot programme. The FLOW Foundation equipped over 250 Jamaicans with certification in digital skills… more
Tuesday, 20 December 2021
Mitchell hits back over ‘attacks’ on Bahamas over FTX
Bahamas – FOREIGN Affairs Minister Fred Mitchell questioned how “attacking” The Bahamas helps resolve the FTX saga and dismissed claims of the country’s jurisdiction being nontransparent… more
UPDATED: Sam Bankman-Fried waives right to fight extradition – FTX founder will go to the US
Bahamas – AFTER a confusing day in court, Sam Bankman-Fried has decided not to fight extradition to the United States, his attorneys announced yesterday… more
Falmouth gets final public Wi-Fi for the year
Jamaica – The north coast town of Falmouth is the latest recipient of the Government’s free public Wi-Fi programme, as more Jamaicans gain access to valuable internet connectivity on the country’s path to becoming a digital society… more
Wednesday, 21 December 2021
MoECST Receives Donation of Laptops and Chromebooks from Build Belize Inc.
Belize – On December 16, 2022, the Ministry of Education, Culture, Science and Technology (MoECST) received a donation of 79 laptops and Chromebooks from Build Belize Inc… more
Expert says tough Cybersecurity Laws needed
Barbados – A top international cybersecurity expert says security systems in Barbados and the rest of the region are about five years behind where they need to be… more
New payment system by February
Barbados – The long-awaited upgrade and expansion of the real time payment system Automated Clearing House (ACH), will roll out in two months, says Minister in the Ministry of Finance Ryan Straughn… more
Five reasons to start an e-commerce business
Caribbean – E-Commerce businesses are something that I would love more folks to spend some time on Google or YouTube learning about. There are many advantages to starting an e-commerce business, especially for those who may not have the capital or resources to start building a large-scale company… more
TBR Connect: A network of opportunities
Jamaica – Tech Beach Retreat is aiming to drive more foreign direct investment, including from the Diaspora, into the Caribbean tech ecosystem through its recently launched networking platform TBRconnect.net… more
St. Kitts And Nevis To Undergo A Digital Transformation
Saint Kitts and Nevis – The Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis is accelerating its Digital Transformation Agenda. The initiative was commemorated on Tuesday 20th December 2022, at a Signing Ceremony for the Digital Identity Authentication Project chaired by the Director (Ag) in the Department of Technology, Ms. Ophelia Blanchard… more
bmobile to increase two of its pre-paid plans
Trinidad and Tobago – It will not be a happy start to the new year for several bmobile pre-paid customers as the company has announced that it will be increasing the price of two of its popular plans… more
Thursday, 22 December 2021
Bahamas shrugs off FTX for perfect ‘40 out of 40’
Bahamas – The Bahamas yesterday shrugged off FTX’s implosion through what the attorney general hailed as the “enormous accomplishment” of a perfect score in the fight against financial crime… more
Ex-AG: Don’t let ‘proper’ FTX collapse probe slide
Bahamas – A former attorney general yesterday warned The Bahamas against letting a “proper probe” into FTX’s implosion slide because of its perfect score in the financial crime fight and Sam Bankman-Fried’s departure… more
FTX founder extradited
Bahamas – EMBATTLED former FTX CEO Samuel Bankman-Fried was extradited to the United States yesterday after formally waiving his right to an extradition hearing… more
FTX investors file writ against former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried and others
Bahamas – Several FTX investors have filed a writ in Supreme Court accusing the company’s founder and former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried and his co-conspirators of orchestrating a massive years-long fraud to divert billions of customer funds for his own personal use and to help grow his crypto empire… more
Public primary schools to receive digital boards
Sint Maarten – Minister of Education, Culture, Youth and Sport (ECYS) Rodolphe Samuel says the St. Maarten’s public education system has reached a very important milestone in the digital era for public primary schools… more
C&W Business director finds balance between family, work
Trinidad and Tobago – BRADLEY RAMCHARAN, director of Cable & Wireless Business/Flow Business, believes Caribbean business approaches and concepts of masculinity are evolving – with empathy and flexibility being at the heart of how men operate within personal and professional spaces… more
Friday, 23 December 2021
Post mortem needed on FTX collapse
Bahamas – Dear Editor, Sam “The Man” Bankman-Fried, the T-shirt wearing crypto gazillionaire, who landed with much fanfare into our little island paradise, is now back home to the good ole USA with his tail between his legs and handcuffs on his wrists… more
Caribbean tech ecosytem still in incubation
Caribbean – Recalling his first time using his cellphone to make a payment while pursuing his master’s degree in Canada, in 2016, Damian McIntyre shares with the audience at Tech Beach Retreat (TBR), held recently at the Iberostar Resort in Rose Hall, St James, how the Caribbean has been a beneficiary of technological advancements particularly from North America, but is in the early stages of developing its own… more
Cuban artists blocked from once-promising NFT trading sites
Cuba – When everything seemed to be going wrong, Cuban multimedia artist Alejandro Pablo García Alarcón found a solution in what some might consider an unusual place: NFTs… more
Judgment affirms Abrahams win in CWJ case, raises issues of minority investor rights
Jamaica – Minority shareholders should get separate meetings to discuss and vote on mergers and acquisitions, rather than them being lumped with majority shareholders wherever interests diverge, according to a decision handed down by the Court of Appeal… more
Lynk records over $1.5b in transactions
Jamaica – More than J$1.5 billion worth of transactions have been conducted via the local digital wallet platform, Lynk… more
Fight over Wi-Fi leads to man’s death
Trinidad and Tobago – A nine-year-old boy is currently receiving counselling from the Children’s Authority of T&T after witnessing his elderly father being choked by a man at their home, shortly before his father died… more
Saturday, 24 December 2022
TSTT to increase mobile rates for International calls, prepaid plans from Jan 01
Trinidad and Tobago – TSTT has announced increases in its rates for international calls and for mobile customers and on three and thirty day prepaid plans. The company’s statement follows… more
Sunday, 25 December 2022
The holiday romance scam
Caribbean – The evolution of romance and relationship related con artistry online has been a long one… more
Blue Banyan targets growth in digital book market
Jamaica – Kingston company Blue Banyan Books Ltd is owned and operated by publisher and Editor-in-Chief Tanya Batson-Savage, a self-confessed bibliophile who has turned her love of books into a growing business venture… more
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