Bahamas Poised to Become Global Digital Asset Hub

The Bahamas is looking beyond tourism to bolster its economy and is turning its attention to cryptocurrencies in a strategy that appears to be winning.

The Caribbean country has launched the inaugural edition of the Crypto Bahamas conference in Nassau, the capital city. The conference is geared toward stimulating the country’s growing cryptocurrency ecosystem and attracting key players in the industry, says Forbes.

“We have the vision to transform the Bahamas into the leading digital asset hub in the Caribbean,” said Philip Davis, the country’s prime minister at the start of the conference.

The conference is the brainchild of FTX, a cryptocurrency exchange with its headquarters in the Bahamas, and other big-name crypto players. 

Several themes will be explored during the conference including the role of regulation on cryptocurrency development and the merging of digital assets and traditional investment portfolios.

Speakers at the event include former U.S. President Bill Clinton and former U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair. The list will be augmented by Cathie Wood of Ark Invest, ex CFTC head Chris Giancarlo and a host of high-profile individuals.

Bahamas recently unveiled crypto strategy

The country’s government unveiled its cryptocurrency strategy for the next four years in a policy white paper. The document outlined two pieces of legislation integral for the new push into crypto frontiers. The first is the Digital Asset and Registered Exchanges Act (DARE) and the second the Financial and Corporate Service Providers Act (FCSP Act), which confers legality on digital assets.

The two laws played a significant role in FTX leaving Hong Kong and setting up shop in The Bahamas. The white paper notes that the country’s regulators are in the process of vetting more applications for cryptocurrency firms that are looking to be domiciled in the country.

The Bahamas is also forging ahead with its central bank digital token (CBDC) called the Sand Dollar. The Sand Dollar was one of the earliest CBDCs after being launched in 2020 to considerable success. 

A PwC report rated the Sand Dollar ahead of China’s digital yuan given the leading role it played in the development of CB

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