WILLEMSTAD - For the sake of clarity, the Curaçao Business Association (VBC) wishes to make it clear that the Government's proposal to increase the license fee in order to raise funds to cover the deficits of the Giro Bank primarily looked at the practical consequences and effects of this measure on socio-economic to happen.

From the point of view of the VBC, raising the license fee will mean that in practice more guilders will have to be paid for foreign currency. The value of the guilder decreases. Due to the fact that this depreciation will be proclaimed by the Government / monetary authority, this cannot be interpreted differently as a de facto disguised and / or insidious devaluation.

In practice, the fall in the value of the guilder compared to other currencies will lead to a very high chance that prices for importing goods and services from abroad will increase and become more expensive. Serious social misery in the form of impoverishment lurks as the experience from neighboring countries shows.

It is therefore strongly advised against using the (disguised) devaluation instrument to resolve the Giro Bank's financial debacle.