CENTRAL BANK ON CHEQUE FOLLY

We again call on the Central Bank to end the fool’s errand of seeking to abolish the use of cheques in The Bahamas. Here is the latest as reported by The Tribune 5 October 2023 from the Governor of the Central Bank John Rolle.  We agree with Ethric Bowe, the Central Bank should do something else with your time and money and stop wasting time on that.

“We will share more details in our various surveys that provided public feedback soon,” Mr Rolle told this newspaper. “However, there was a compelling fraction of the public who wanted more time to transition away from cheques. The Central Bank and financial institutions will provide more details on what the interim milestones are that are being targeted for progress on payments system developments.”

#The Central Bank, in a release on the issue, said the deadline shift resulted from a “consensus” among members of the Steering Committee appointed to oversee the transition away from cheques that more time is needed to ready and educate Bahamians. The delay will also give Bahamian commercial banks and other financial providers more time to better roll-out the digital payments infrastructure that will replace cheques as a means of settling transactions.

Ethric Bowe, an engineer with multiple business interests including Advanced Technical Enterprises, an insurance agency/brokerage and a family farm, told Tribune Business “there was no purpose” to the year-end 2024 elimination target and the Central Bank should drop the idea “period”.

“That’s a good decision,” he added. “All they need to do is digitise the cheques. The same information you have on the cheque is the same information that you have on the debit and credit card. It doesn’t make sense.” eChecks have been a feature of the US financial system for several years, and Mr Bowe previously added: “Instead of moving away from cheques, they’re getting deeper into them. I think it’s [their elimination in The Bahamas] a bad plan.”