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NASSAU, BAHAMAS – A digital payments solutions provider is calling for streamlined digital payment regulations across the Caribbean to foster cross-border trade and adoption, as it accelerates its international expansion with an imminent launch in Guyana and ongoing initiatives in Trinidad and Jamaica.

Nicholas Rees, Kanoo Pays’ chairman and co-founder, told Eyewitness News: “We’re really looking forward to bringing our wearable technology to market and seeing some of our international investments begin to pay off. We are literally on the cusp of launching live in Guyana. We’ve received our license to operate there, we have the staff in place, and merchants are being onboarded. We’re planning a ribbon-cutting ceremony or official announcement in Guyana within the next 30 days. That’s the biggest update from us, from a group perspective.”

He added: “We have a number of international initiatives underway. We previously launched live in Trinidad with our ticketing platform, and we did all the ticketing for the Commonwealth Youth Games in Trinidad. Additionally, we have another event planned in Jamaica. So, we have operations in Guyana, Trinidad, and Jamaica, and we’re looking to propel and further expand these initiatives, with license applications pending to go full steam in those markets.”… Read the rest

A BAHAMIAN digital payments provider yesterday said it had processed more than $200m in transactions since its launch after expanding to a 35,000-strong user base.

Jevon Butler, Kanoo’s chief sales officer, spoke at a forum organised by the Small Business Development Centre (SBDC): “When I checked this number yesterday morning, we are almost at 35,000 active users in the Kanoo ecosystem, which will be 10 percent of the population or just less than that.

“We have over 400 active merchants throughout the entire Bahamas, and these merchants also include agents in New Providence, Grand Bahama, Exuma, Long Island, Andros and I think we even have an agent in Inagua.”

The “agency model” is featuring prominently in Kanoo’s roll-out because it allows recipients of payments and cash transfers to collect physical currency from a partner merchant on his or her respective island.

With the Central Bank digital currency, the Sand Dollar, making this process easier, Mr Butler said: “I’m always proud as a Bahamian that Sand Dollar was the first Central Bank digital currency in the world…

“The Central Bank digital currency is legal tender. There is no difference between you having physical cash in your wallet or purse and having the Central Bank digital currency stored in one of the mobile wallet providers’ platforms.… Read the rest

A NEWLY-LAUNCHED innovation hub aims to give Bahamian digital assets and technology entrepreneurs direct access to international financing by forging links with California’s Silicon Valley.

Davinia Bain, co-founder of Crypto-Isle and the Kanoo Innovation Hub, told Tribune Business that the latter’s website will be soliciting individuals to participate in the “start-up innovation programme”.

She added: “This is a two-week long programme that will start on November 28. Those who are successful from that programme, the top 30 persons, will matriculate into our pre-accelerator. That’s a four-week programme in conjunction with Draper University.

“Then the final leg is the Silicon Valley programme, where we ship the top ten innovative founders to Silicon Valley for five weeks for an immersion programme with Draper University. The first level of the programme, the innovation start-up programme, that’s a maximum of 200 persons. The second level is a maximum of 30. And then the third level is a maximum of ten persons or less.”

This “funnel system” will allow more persons to spread the word about the Kanoo Innovation Hub and bring more people into the initiative, thus broadening the pool of entrepreneurs. The Kanoo Innovation Hub is a joint venture between Crypto Isle and Kanoo Pays, who have partnered with Draper University, a Silicon Valley venture capital network known for its investment in more than 34 unicorn companies and at least six rhino companies.… Read the rest

The Bahamas is “going in reverse” by increasing physical cash in circulation by 20 percent, a digital payments provider argued yesterday, even though its Sand Dollar roll-out is “the model for the rest of the world”.

Nicholas Rees, Kanoo Pays’ chairman and co-founder, told the Bahamas Business Outlook conference that this nation was moving in the opposite direction to the world’s increasing embrace of digital technologies and payments by expanding the volume of physical currency in circulation to $588m as at November 2024.

In contrast, the amount of Sand Dollars, the Bahamian digital currency, in circulation and available stood at $1.9m at the same date – a volume equivalent to just 0.3 percent of its physical equivalent. Mr Rees, though, argued that the numbers represent a positive indicator and expose that there is room for “some growth” in Sand Dollar usage throughout The Bahamas.

Acknowledging that barriers related to education, awareness and adoption remain to be broken when it comes to the Bahamian digital currency, the Kanoo chief said total electronic transactions in this nation over the past five years totaled some $94m compared to just under $1bn worth of payments via credit and debit cards.

“Total cash in circulation is $588m, which is an increase over 2019,” Mr Rees said.… Read the rest

Kanoo Pays is developing a “super app” for the Caribbean that can handle multiple currencies and hold all of a user’s financial information, Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDC), and cryptocurrencies, the company’s Chairman and co-founder Nicholas Rees said yesterday.

Rees made the announcement while a panelist on the OKX stage at the D3 Bahamas Conference after being asked what the future holds for all of the Fintech innovation that has sprung up recently.

“I will answer it by sharing with you our vision for financial inclusion,” said Rees.

“So we have embarked upon building a super app for the Caribbean.