On the contrary, it was sheer, unadulterated boldness that launched Cayman into competition with celebrated poleis such as London, New York City and Zurich, shaking up international finance in upstart fashion.
Still, leaders in “important places,” such as the U.S. and Europe, seem unable, or unwilling, to rationalize the economic motivations that drive immense amounts of money into and through tiny offshore parvenus that in their opinion should have had the courtesy to remain insignificant.
Because Cayman refused to honor its pre-appointed place in their grand scheme, larger competitors are prone to characterize Cayman’s boldness as brazenness, reduce Cayman’s sophisticated financial sector to wild west outlawry and dismiss Cayman’s hard-won successes as proceeds of crime. (Never mind the reams of official reports from global organizations that continually vindicate Cayman’s system as being as fair and transparent as anyone else’s.)
Part and parcel with critics’ wonted diminutives such as “tax haven,” “treasure island” and “secretive jurisdiction” is a supercilious attitude that, inherently, Cayman should not be allowed to contend, Cayman could not have the ability to compete fairly, and Cayman does not deserve to have wealth.
What detractors don’t seem to understand is that, decades ago, Cayman designated itself as a safe harbor for people seeking to protect their assets from instability, and as an experimental laboratory for novel financing alternatives.
Cayman should never be cowed by accusations of boldness. That is the spirit that accompanied our sailors across the seas and buttressed the hopes of those left tending the hearthstone. Boldness, especially in financial innovation, has been Cayman’s most valuable resource ever since the first settlers dared to brave the isolation and emptiness of our shores.
Today, however, boldness seems to be in short supply among our country’s leaders. Cavalierism, yes. Brashness, okay. Chutzpah, sure. But true boldness — of vision, of ideas, of goals — unfortunately not.
Unfortunately, other than perhaps the George Town cruise port project — which was begun under the previous UDP government but which the PPM has allowed to advance — the current government has yet to demonstrate either aptitude or appetite for imagining and executing creative solutions.
The government’s approach instead has been one focused on maintaining the status quo, or reverting to rose-tinted memories of years past, and so far the results include: reliving the waste-to-energy debacle at the George Town Landfill, rushing through a National Conservation Law that could chill development, and designing a reactionary immigration system to thwart the hopes of outsiders hoping to settle here.
What is missing are any concrete goals for Cayman’s future. One of history’s adamantine laws is that things cannot, and will not, stay the same. The question before our leaders should not be, “How do we protect ourselves from change?”, but rather, “Who do we, as a country, wish to become?”
We cannot afford for Cayman to become a victim of insular, self-perpetuating thinking. We need to look to newer and bolder leaders and doers, whether they populate the halls of government or the always-more-innovative and nimble private sector.
One truism remains immutable: A country as small as Cayman can never grow bigger than its ideas.
Related Videos
Dear Editorial Board
It is commonly said that self praise is no praise and to say that it is boldness, innovative ideas and its daring policies is what makes Cayman the financial sector it is , is tantamount to saying that you have the best security guards at the annual children’s picnic in the park.
You are who you are because you have in the past been a safe haven for things that I can only say would not support any of the adjectives I have previously used.
Plain and simple, Cayman was a laundering capital of the world. Strides have been made to change that but if it walks and talks like a duck, it is most likely a duck.
So please, back the bus a little bit and write the article free of whatever pressure you people are feeling to write such a funny article. Thanks for setting up your new comic section. I’m a little surprised that you didn’t add some of the other Caribbean Islands to the list of Countries with similar high end policies and strategies.
The Cayman Islands didn’t transform itself from a Caribbean backwater to a global financial center by being timid.
I beg to differ. Timid people who bent over backwards at the beckon call of the almighty dollar have made this country into the hole it is today. The financial industry has only benefitted a few people on this island, those who have sold their souls.
Now, we are overrun by people with fancy titles that shuffle papers and send emails on behalf of the elite. I don’t know how they look themselves in the mirror.
Cayman has always belonged to the Caymanians. Most of us migrated here and now we enforce our view of reality on people who were surviving without our help.
I am so shocked, dismayed and disappointed. The worst perpetrators in this sorry affair are the Caymanian politicians and landowners who would rather see foreigners benefit at the expense of their own people.
You continue your madness at your own peril. The world cannot possibly sustain your insanity. Rectification cannot be far away. Just remember the Roman Empire that imploded under its own arrogance. The writing is on the wall. MENE MENE TEKEL UPHARSIN. Look it up.
Absolutely spot on article.
I cannot comment on the very early days as l was not here.
But I can well remember discussing money laundering with a good friend who was deputy in charge of Barclays Bank over 30 years ago.
He told me that a man had come to their bank with a briefcase full of cash and been turned away.
He said his office overlooked the street and he watched as this guy trudged from bank to bank, looking more and more frustrated as he was constantly turned away.
Great job! This is exactly what the Cayman leadership should be doing in my opinion. They should not be apologizing for having a free system where producers and investors have a place to shield their assets from the greedy, bloated and wasteful bureaucrats of the world who have tapped and over-tapped the private sector for decades and still managed to rack up massive debts to the tune of 16 *T*rillion in the U.S. alone.
Nor should Cayman be expected to be the financial police of the world. Dirty money that needs to be laundered was not made dirty in Cayman. If other countries policed their own crooks a little better maybe they would stop trying to break existing Cayman law by sending their money offshore.
Crooks will be crooks and you stop them when you catch them.
No apologies Cayman, boldness indeed.