An understanding reached between the Central Bank of Curaçao and St. Maarten (CBCS) and commercial banks on access to accounts for natural persons will hopefully make it easier for law-abiding residents to open one. In principle every adult legal resident must be able to get at least a payment account with proof of identity and local address once these are verified.

Applicants will then receive an answer within 10 working days. One possible reason for rejection could be a criminal record.

The minimum package of services is to include Internet banking, a mobile banking application and a debit card to access the account.

Related agreements were made with the Curaçao Bankers Association (CBA), but also the St. Maarten Bankers Association (SMBA). Most major banks operate in both Dutch Caribbean countries of the monetary union anyway.

CBCS correctly pointed out that due to the rapid digitalization of society, having a bank account is becoming essential for social inclusion, especially since cheques have been largely abandoned. Besides, walking with all one’s cash or keeping it at home is not only inconvenient but downright dangerous.

Under the circumstances, an unnecessarily difficult and cumbersome process to open current accounts is not in the best general interest. Doing so should be a simple and straightforward matter, provided there are no indications of money-laundering, the financing of terrorism or other illicit activities.

As usual, the proof of the pudding will of course be in the eating, because words always look good on paper. Important is how all this works in practice.