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What have central banks said?

Beginner · Rules and the Caribbean · about 5 min read · last checked 27 October 2026

Central banks have mostly warned about crypto, and some in the Caribbean have built their own digital money instead.

In Trinidad and Tobago

• In January 2019 the Central Bank, the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Financial Intelligence Unit issued a joint warning. It said virtual currencies do not have legal tender status here, that providers were neither regulated nor supervised, and that no law protected consumers from losses.
• The same warning said prices are volatile and may be unsuitable for most investors, and that schemes promising high returns may be Ponzi schemes in disguise.
• Since then the country has passed a law for crypto businesses. See Why does crypto regulation exist? and Is crypto legal in Trinidad and Tobago?

Digital money from central banks

• A central bank digital currency, or CBDC, is a digital form of a country’s own money, issued by its central bank. It is different from Bitcoin, which no one issues.
• The Bahamas launched the Sand Dollar in October 2020. It is issued by the Central Bank of The Bahamas and pegged to the Bahamian dollar.
• Jamaica minted its JAM-DEX in August 2022. In February 2026 the Jamaica Bankers Association said high costs and low demand had slowed its adoption.
• The Eastern Caribbean ran a DCash pilot from March 2021 to January 2024. In February 2026 its central bank suspended development of DCash 2.0 to focus on a regional fast payment system.

Keep in mind

• Use of these digital currencies has been small so far. The IMF said in May 2022 that the Sand Dollar made up less than 0.1 percent of currency in circulation.
• Check dates: central bank positions change, and this lesson was last checked on 27 October 2026.
• General information, not financial advice.

What the Central Bank of Trinidad and Tobago does

The Central Bank describes its primary role, set by the Central Bank Act of 1964, as fostering monetary and financial stability and public confidence. In practice that includes several jobs:

• Monetary policy. It aims to keep inflation low and stable, keep the foreign exchange market orderly and maintain adequate foreign exchange reserves. Its main signal is the repo rate, the rate on overnight loans to commercial banks. In its November 2025 report it said the rate had been held at 3.50 per cent since March 2020.
• Currency. It is responsible for an adequate supply of notes and coins.
• Banker to government. It holds government accounts and handles securities the government issues.
• Financial stability. It oversees banks and the payments system.

Why this matters when you think about crypto

A central bank is responsible for the money people use every day and for the safety of the banking system. Crypto sits outside both. The Central Bank cannot adjust the supply of bitcoin, and no one guarantees its value. That is why central banks, in Trinidad and Tobago and elsewhere, have mostly warned about crypto and watched who handles it. The 2019 joint warning described in this lesson was part of that.

Three kinds of digital money compared

• Bitcoin and similar coins. No issuer, not legal tender in Trinidad and Tobago, large price swings.
• Stablecoins. Issued by private companies, aiming to hold a steady price against a currency, with the risk that the peg slips.
• Central bank digital currencies. Issued by a country's central bank as a digital form of its own money. The Bahamas, Jamaica and the Eastern Caribbean have all tried versions.

What the Caribbean experiments suggest

The examples above are real, but adoption has been small. The IMF said the Sand Dollar made up less than 0.1 percent of currency in circulation in May 2022. The Jamaica Bankers Association pointed to high costs and low demand. The Eastern Caribbean Central Bank paused DCash 2.0 to focus on a regional fast payment system. When you read a headline about a new digital currency, a useful question is what problem it solves that existing payments do not.

Common mistakes

• Confusing a central bank digital currency with Bitcoin because both are digital.
• Assuming a central bank "backs" or approves a crypto it has not mentioned.
• Using an old central bank statement as if it were current.
• Treating a pilot project as proof that people have adopted it.

Try it yourself

1. Open the Central Bank of Trinidad and Tobago website. Find its page on what it does and list three functions in your own words.
2. Find its latest monetary policy announcement and note the date and the repo rate.
3. Search the same site for a statement on virtual assets or crypto and note the date, so you know how current it is.

Key terms

Central bank, legal tender, CBDC, peg, Ponzi scheme.

Sources and credits

The Central Bank's role and policy tools: Central Bank of Trinidad and Tobago, What we do and its Monetary Policy Report, November 2025. General information, not financial advice.

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