Bridgetown, Barbados – October 1st, 2025

Barbados’ position among the world’s top ten captive insurance domiciles is not good enough, according to Minister of Energy and Business, Senator Lisa Cummins, who says the government is targeting the number one spot.

Speaking at the Media Launch of Global Business Week 2025 (GBW 2025) on September 30—hosted by BIBA, the Association for Global Business—Cummins affirmed the administration’s commitment to strengthening its global competitiveness in the captive insurance sector. She also noted rising competition from countries like Canada, which she said has been “investing very heavily in attracting the captive insurance sector.”

The Minister commended BIBA for its consistent advocacy, education, and collaboration in expanding both the captive insurance segment and the wider international business sector. She praised BIBA’s contributions through its annual Global Business Week, which will take place from October 19 to 25, and other initiatives.

Cummins also highlighted the development of Business Barbados, the new state-owned entity launched in April, which replaced the Corporate Affairs and Intellectual Property Office (CAIPO). Business Barbados is intended to enhance the ease of doing business by streamlining and modernising business registration, regulatory compliance, and other administrative processes, while reducing bureaucracy and improving customer experience.

While acknowledging that Business Barbados remains a work in progress, she appealed to the business community for patience.

“Thirty years of doing business in a certain way, without all the systems being put in place, without the structures having been reformed, without all of the training and the retraining and the upskilling and the capacity building, will not change overnight,” she stated.

At the same time, Cummins was clear that the transition phase is no excuse for subpar service.

“[BIBA needs] to continue advocating. It means that you do need to continue pointing out things where they are not going well, so that in areas where change needs to come, even as the ship is being steered, that they’re always conscious that you are partners, not opponents, in the process of change,” she reiterated.

Cummins also announced that Business Barbados is working with Microsoft directly to develop and implement a new digital platform aimed at facilitating business more efficiently.

On the international front, the Minister revealed that Barbados’ Treaty Negotiating Team had successfully completed negotiations for a new Double Taxation Agreement (DTA) with Hong Kong, and that talks are ongoing for a similar agreement with Curaçao.

Turning her attention back to Global Business Week, Cummins emphasized that the global business continues to be one of the key pillars of the Barbadian economy, especially in turbulent times.

“We all remember a time where the world stopped, tourism stopped moving, and it was the corporation tax receipts from the international business sector that kept this country flowing,” she remarked.

Also speaking at the GBW 2025 Media Launch, BIBA President Marlon Yarde highlighted the week’s overarching theme: “Resilience: Adapting, Transforming, Thriving.” He underscored the importance of the Week as a platform to engage stakeholders, foster connections, and reaffirm the value of the global business sector to Barbados—while helping to demystify the industry.

Kaye-Anne Greenidge, Chief Executive Officer of Invest Barbados, perennial Diamond Sponsor of GBW, reiterated the role of global business in positioning Barbados as a preferred jurisdiction. She emphasized the sector’s impact on job creation, skills transfer, and the growth of professional services, as well as its direct contribution to economic development.

In addition to Invest Barbados, the other Premium Sponsors of GBW 2025 include Platinum Sponsor the International Business Unit of the Ministry of Energy & Business; Gold sponsors – the Central Bank of Barbados, Tabit Insurance, and CIBC Caribbean Bank; Silver sponsors –  Vistra Barbados, Seaco SRL, Lex Caribbean, Trident Corporate Services, KPMG, The Bank of Nova Scotia Offshore Banking Unit, PwC East Caribbean, Clarke Gittens Farmer Attorneys-At-Law, and EY Management Ltd.”

• By Geralyn Edward for BIBA, the Association for Global Business