In two weeks, the Eastern Caribbean will have another opportunity to reshape the global narrative surrounding its Citizenship by Investment (CBI) programmes, where the conversation has been viewed through the lens of a security and regulatory risks from Washington and Brussels.
Antigua and Barbuda will host the Caribbean Investment Summit 2025 (CIS25) from April 22 to 26 at the American University of Antigua (AUA), under the overarching theme of integrity, stability and sustainability, bringing together five prime ministers and approximately 500 delegates from around the world.
During a press conference held Wednesday at the Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority Conference Room, Citizenship by Investment Unit (CIU) CEO Charmaine Quinland-Donovan described the event as “an opportune time” to highlight Antigua and Barbuda’s investment programme as the golden standard in “the investment migration industry for its integrity and consistency.”
The summit will come just mere weeks after the European Parliament’s Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs voted to approve amendments to EU visa regulations that could affect visa-free access for Caribbean nations with CBI programmes.
These developments followed claims by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in late March as he flew through the region seeking to assuage concerns about US-Caribbean relations that Citizenship by Investment Programmes could pose security risks to the United States.
Maurico Claver-Carone, the US Special Envoy for Latin America, was quoted prior to that trip, in a State Department briefing, as saying the Caribbean programmes “should not be a major part of these islands’ GDP” and that the processing of citizenship from individuals from Iran and China “affect not only the national security of the United States but, frankly, that affect the security of these islands”.
And while some in the international community continue to portray Antigua and Barbuda, Grenada, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia and Dominica as reckless passport merchants auctioning sovereignty and backdoor access to the Global North to questionable characters with deep pockets, the CIS2025 will serve—in the eyes of the regulators of these programmes and the prime ministers—as a platform to demonstrate the region’s commitment to robust regulatory frameworks and due diligence processes.
In her remarks, Quinland-Donovan emphasised that Antigua and Barbuda’s CBI programme has always maintained stringent due diligence practices.
“We have always had the most stringent due diligence process. Our competitors used to use that against us saying that it takes longer to process an application with Antigua and Barbuda because the due diligence process takes too long because we have a multi-layered process,” she explained.
The CIU CEO further noted that these rigorous standards have positioned Antigua and Barbuda to better respond to international concerns. “Hence why I feel that we are a little more prepared for responding to the concerns of the international community,” she noted.
A key focus of the summit will be highlighting progress on the regional regulatory body for CBI programmes being developed by the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank—whose representatives have met with regional programmes throughout the region in the past few weeks—in collaboration with the OECS Commission, following the agreement signed by OECS Prime Ministers in March 2024.
Stachio Williams, CEO of OPEN Interactive Inc and main organiser of the conference, emphasised the importance of regional collaboration in addressing these challenges.
“It’s important for the programmes to come together year after year to present themselves as a bloc and to discuss these issues that might affect our joint economies,” Williams said. “Hopefully those standards will help to improve international relations and help us to avoid some of the international crises that we’ve seen in previous years.”
Williams also highlighted the historical significance of the summit returning to Antigua and Barbuda, where it originated in 2016.
The summit agenda includes high-level sessions focused on addressing international concerns while highlighting the economic benefits of CBI programmes.
Day 1 will feature a Regional Regulatory Framework Roundtable with VIP delegates, which will include representatives from the US and the EU, while subsequent days include a Regional Leadership Forum with prime ministers, sessions on economic resilience, banking excellence and discussions on market innovation.
Beyond just addressing regulatory concerns, the summit will aim to showcase Antigua and Barbuda as more than just an investment destination.
Delegates will participate in investment tours on the final day, visiting properties and infrastructure development projects supported by the CBI programme.
“This summit allows us to place a well-deserved spotlight on Antigua and Barbuda, not just as an investment jurisdiction, but as an amazing place to live, work and vacation,” Quinland-Donovan said.
The event will conclude with the Caribbean Excellence Awards ceremony on April 25 featuring international recording artist Wyclef Jean.
