Central Bank of Curaçao and Sint Maarten
The central bank serving Curaçao and Sint Maarten, responsible for monetary policy, currency administration, financial supervision, and financial stability.
Last updated August 25, 2026
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Overview
The Central Bank of Curaçao and Sint Maarten, commonly known as the CBCS, is the monetary authority and central bank of Curaçao and Sint Maarten. Headquartered in Willemstad, it serves two constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Netherlands that share monetary institutions and, since 2025, the Caribbean guilder. Its responsibilities include formulating and implementing monetary policy, administering the currency framework, managing international reserves, promoting financial stability, and supervising relevant parts of the financial sector. The institution traces its origins to 1828, making it one of the oldest surviving central banks in the Americas. It operated for many years as the central bank of the Netherlands Antilles and was previously known as the Bank of the Netherlands Antilles. In that earlier constitutional arrangement, its mandate covered the monetary system and currency of the Netherlands Antilles as a whole. The dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles in October 2010 changed the institutional and monetary landscape. Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba became Caribbean Netherlands public entities subject to the monetary framework and oversight of De Nederlandsche Bank, while Curaçao and Sint Maarten retained a shared central bank. The institution consequently adopted its present name. A central feature of the CBCS model has been the administration of a currency shared by Curaçao and Sint Maarten. The Netherlands Antillean guilder remained in use until it was withdrawn on July 1, 2025, when it was replaced by the Caribbean guilder. The currency transition represented a major modernization and institutional milestone for the two economies while preserving a common monetary framework. Beyond currency issuance and monetary operations, the CBCS supports the soundness of banks and other financial institutions through supervision and regulatory functions. It also manages foreign reserves and contributes to confidence in the payments and financial systems. These responsibilities are particularly significant in small, open Caribbean economies that are exposed to tourism cycles, external financial conditions, international correspondent-banking requirements, and changes in the constitutional relationship with the Netherlands. The bank has also faced public scrutiny. The most prominent controversy concerned former president Emsley Tromp and reported connections involving businessman John Deuss and financier Hushang Ansary. Tromp was dismissed from the presidency in 2017. Public information supplied for this dossier does not establish a complete account of the allegations, legal findings, or subsequent institutional reforms; the episode is therefore recorded as a governance controversy rather than described as a proven criminal finding against the institution.
History
The Central Bank of Curaçao and Sint Maarten has institutional roots dating to 1828. Its long history makes it one of the oldest surviving central banks in the Americas. For much of its modern existence, it functioned as the central bank of the Netherlands Antilles and was known as the Bank of the Netherlands Antilles. Its mandate covered monetary policy, currency administration, reserve management, and financial-sector responsibilities for the former Netherlands Antilles. The constitutional dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles in October 2010 produced a new division of monetary responsibilities. Curaçao and Sint Maarten continued to share a central bank and a common monetary framework. Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba, which became part of the Caribbean Netherlands, came under the monetary and supervisory framework of De Nederlandsche Bank. Following that change, the institution adopted the name Central Bank of Curaçao and Sint Maarten, while retaining its role as the shared monetary authority of the two countries. The CBCS administered the Netherlands Antillean guilder during the post-2010 period. The shared-currency arrangement continued until the introduction of the Caribbean guilder in 2025, when the Netherlands Antillean guilder was withdrawn on July 1. The change marked an important transition in the monetary identity of Curaçao and Sint Maarten and required the central bank to administer a new currency for the shared monetary area. The bank's continuing functions include monetary-policy administration, currency issuance, international-reserve management, financial supervision, and the promotion of financial stability. These activities support the banking system, payments infrastructure, and confidence in the monetary order of two small, externally oriented Caribbean economies. The institution has also been subject to governance scrutiny. A notable controversy involved former president Emsley Tromp and reported relationships with John Deuss and Hushang Ansary. Tromp was removed from office in 2017. The available reference material does not provide sufficient detail to state the full legal or regulatory outcome of the matter, so the episode should be understood as a documented controversy associated with the bank's leadership rather than as a fully characterized finding against the CBCS itself.
- 2025
Introduction of the Caribbean guilder
[1]The Caribbean guilder replaced the Netherlands Antillean guilder, which was withdrawn on July 1, 2025.
- 2017
Removal of Emsley Tromp
[1]President Emsley Tromp was dismissed amid a controversy involving reported connections with John Deuss and Hushang Ansary.
- 2010
Constitutional restructuring and renaming
[1]After the Netherlands Antilles was dissolved, the bank continued serving Curaçao and Sint Maarten and adopted its present name. The BES islands moved into the monetary framework of De Nederlandsche Bank.
- 1828
Institutional origins
[1]The institution traces its origins to 1828, establishing a history that makes it one of the oldest surviving central banks in the Americas.
Products and positioning
A shared monetary authority for Curaçao and Sint Maarten, positioned around price stability, currency confidence, financial-sector soundness, and orderly operation of the financial system.
Currency · 2025
Caribbean guilder
The Caribbean guilder is the shared currency administered for Curaçao and Sint Maarten. It replaced the Netherlands Antillean guilder in 2025 and represents the current currency framework managed by the CBCS.
Currency
Netherlands Antillean guilder
The Netherlands Antillean guilder was the currency administered by the bank during its earlier role as the central bank of the Netherlands Antilles and during the post-2010 shared monetary arrangement. It was withdrawn on July 1, 2025, following the introduction of the Caribbean guilder.
Central-banking service
Monetary policy
The CBCS formulates and implements monetary policy for the shared monetary area of Curaçao and Sint Maarten. Its monetary role is linked to currency administration, reserve management, and the preservation of confidence in the financial system.
Regulatory service
Financial supervision
The bank performs supervisory and financial-stability functions intended to support the soundness of relevant financial institutions and the orderly operation of the financial system in Curaçao and Sint Maarten.
Controversies
2017
Controversy involving Emsley Tromp
Former CBCS president Emsley Tromp was dismissed in 2017 following controversy concerning reported connections with businessman John Deuss and financier Hushang Ansary. The supplied reference does not establish the complete legal outcome or all institutional consequences.
Brand decisions
2025
Replacement of the Netherlands Antillean guilderProduct launchBackground
Curaçao and Sint Maarten required a currency arrangement appropriate to their post-Netherlands Antilles shared monetary framework.
Action taken
The CBCS introduced the Caribbean guilder and withdrew the Netherlands Antillean guilder on July 1, 2025.
Aftermath
The two countries retained a shared currency administered by the CBCS under a new currency name.
2010
Continuation as the shared central bank of Curaçao and Sint MaartenStrategyBackground
The dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles changed the constitutional status of the islands and divided monetary responsibilities.
Action taken
The bank adopted its present name and continued operating as the common central bank for Curaçao and Sint Maarten, while the BES islands came under De Nederlandsche Bank.
Aftermath
The change established the current institutional scope of the CBCS.
Sources2 sources
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