Photo: Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Peter Turnquest
NASSAU, Bahamas — Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Peter Turnquest explained in a statement issued yesterday that government made the most prudent move when it borrowed $750 million in U.S. dollars in a bond issue last year.
Turnquest was responding to comments made in the media by former Central Bank of The Bahamas (CBOB) Governor James Smith, who suggested that government should have used the excess liquidity in the commercial banking system to satisfy local payables.
Smith’s comments suggested that government made the wrong decision when it decided on the $750 million bond issue. However, Turnquest contended in his statement that, if CBOB thought it best for government to dip into the system’s excess bank liquidity, it likely would have suggested this route for the payment of government’s Bahamian dollar bills. https://thenassauguardian.com/2018/08/03/dpm-to-former-cbob-chief-decision-on-750m-loan-sound/
