Other Institutions or Persons in the Possession of a Dispensation

Admission Requirements
These admission requirements are issued on the basis of article 45 paragraph 4 of the National Ordinance on the Supervision of Banking and Credit Institutions 1994 (hereinafter referred to as the National Ordinance).

Admission policy
In principle, an institution or person, as indicated above, is only admitted if it contributes to a sound development of the credit sector.

Application fee
The applicant must pay a fee of NAf. 2,000.00 in order for the Centrale Bank van Curaçao en Sint Maarten (hereinafter referred to as the CBCS) to take its request into consideration. This application fee will not be refunded if the dispensation request should be rejected.

Application procedures
When applying for a dispensation, the following procedures must be adhered to:

1. Submit a formal request for the application for a dispensation under the terms of article 45 paragraph 4 of the National Ordinance.
2. Submit the Application Form for Credit Institutions, as found on the website of the CBCS.
3. Submit the requested documentation and information mentioned under ‘Formal request’.

Please refer to the next paragraph for the detailed list of requirements.

1. Submit proof of payment of the application fee of NAf. 2,000.00. Please note that the application is considered to be filed when payment of the application fee is received.

Please note that the application will only be processed when all required information is correctly and completely received by the CBCS.

Formal request
When applying for a dispensation, the following information and documentation is required to be submitted to the CBCS:

1. The duly completed Application Form for Credit Institutions.
2. The duly completed personal questionnaires and other underlying documents of all (co-) policy makers[1]  and (prospective) holder(s) of a qualifying interest[2].
3. A duly signed statement from a Certified Public Accountant certifying that the applicant has at its disposal free and unencumbered equity capital of at least NAf. 50,000.00. The minimum equity capital requirement is, in principle, NAf. 50,000.00, but may be increased based on the intended size of the business.
4. The business and director’s license issued by the Government.
5. The extract of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
6. The articles of incorporation of the applicant, indicating that the objective of the business is to conduct credit extension activities.
7. The shareholders’ register (indicating shareholder, type of share, number of shares, amount paid up, acquisition date, transfer date), if applicable.
8. The group structure of the applicant, if applicable.
9. The internal organizational structure of the applicant.
10. The three (3) most recent (audited) financial statements of the applicant, if applicable.
11. A business plan together with its financial forecasts reflecting a sound and realistic projection of the activities the applicant will undertake to accomplish its statutory objectives. The business plan should at least cover the following topics:
    a. A detailed explanation of the credit extension activities including at least a three-year financial projection (projected balance sheet and profit and loss statement) of the intended credit extension activities.
    b. An explanation of the means by which the activities will be financed. This includes the ‘Source of Funds Declaration’ form.
    c. A market analysis of the market in which the applicant will operate.
    d. The maximum loan amount to be extended per borrower.
    e. The repayment terms and other conditions relevant to the loan.
    f. The annual nominal interest rate, the annual percentage rate (hereafter: the APR) and other additional costs that will be charged. We refer to Appendix 1 of the Provisions on the Disclosure of Pricing Information on Consumer Credit[3] (hereafter: the APR Provisions) for the method to calculate the APR.
    g. The total amount of loans to be extended.
    h. The Client Due Diligence procedures.
12. An overview of the internal control system, by means of an adequate segregation of duties within the key business operations and the administrative, accounting and management information procedures to safeguard compliance to internal policies and procedures and laws and regulations, as well as safeguarding the assets of the applicant. In particular, controls related to compliance with Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Terrorist Financing (‘AML/CFT’) laws, rules and regulations (including amongst other the National Ordinance on the Reporting of Unusual Transactions, the National Ordinance on Identification of Clients when Rendering Services, the National Ordinance Combatting Money Laundering and the Financing of Terrorism (Sint Maarten) and the FATF Recommendations, the Bank’s Provisions and Guidelines on the Detection and Deterrence of Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing for Credit Institutions) [4].
13. A copy of the actual loan agreement between the lender and the borrower which discloses the legal terms and conditions, the applicable costs of credit[5], and all other main characteristics of the credit product[6].
14. A copy of the internal APR tool used to calculate the APR in accordance with the mathematical formula and the methods set out in Appendix 1 of the APR Provisions.
15. A copy of the loan policy, which includes among others, the loan approval process and creditworthiness check of the consumer. The loan policy should be compliant with the requirements prescribed in the Provisions on Preventing Overextensions of Credit (hereafter: POC Provisions)[7].

Ongoing supervision requirements
Please note that a dispensation from the CBCS is bound among others to the following requirements:

1. The entity should maintain positive cash flows and a positive equity at all times.
2. The entity should comply with applicable and future law, rules and regulations of the CBCS, e.g., the APR Provisions and POC Provisions.
3. The entity will be subject to onsite examinations by the CBCS in order to verify its compliance with the law, regulations and the conditions as set for in the dispensation document.
4. In accordance with article 45a of the aforementioned National Ordinance, the entity will be subject to a quarterly supervision fee to cover the costs associated with supervision.

General comments regarding the admission requirements

1. Additional information not mentioned under the paragraph ‘Formal request’ may be requested for the adequate assessment of the application.
2. The submission of the dispensation request and the underlying documents does not entail that the entity will automatically qualify for a dispensation to conduct credit extension activities.
3. The abovementioned requirements may be subject to change.

Links to the application documents:

1. Application Form: https://www.centralbank.cw/application-forms/application-forms-supervised-institutions/credit-institutions
2. Personal questionnaire (including the ‘Declaration of no objection’): https://www.centralbank.cw/applications-forms/questionnaires
3. Source of Funds Declaration: https://www.centralbank.cw/applications-forms/reporting-forms-supervised-institutions/credit-institutions

[1] (Co-) policy maker is defined as any person who (co-) determines or is to be appointed to (co-) determine the daily management and policy of the business.

[2] (Prospective) holder(s) of a qualifying interest is understood to be both a direct and indirect holding that is the Ultimate Beneficial Owner owning 10% or more of the nominal capital of the business, also to exercise directly or indirectly voting rights in the business.

[3] We refer to the APR Provisions on the website of the CBCS: https://cdn.centralbank.cw/media/legislation_guidelines/20190120_apr_provisions_2017.pdf

[4] We refer to the Provisions and Guidelines on the website of the CBCS: https://cdn.centralbank.cw/media/legislation_guidelines/20190120_pg_for_ci_white_november_2013.pdf

[5] We refer to the definition of ‘total cost of the credit to the consumer’ in the paragraph 2 of the APR Provisions.

[6] We refer to Appendix 2 of the APR Provisions.

[7] We refer to the APR Provisions on the website of the CBCS: Microsoft Word - POC Provision jan 2015 (centralbank.cw)