The Security Interest in Movable Property Bill 2024, which was debated on Wednesday evening in the National Assembly received support from both sides of the House and was passed, a Ministry of Finance release stated yesterday.
The Bill sets out the legal framework to pledge movable property as collateral.
Senior Minister in the Office of the President with Responsibility for Finance and the Public Service, Dr Ashni Singh, who piloted the Bill through the House, stated that it represents the latest instalment in a long sequence of legislative and other interventions made by the government to strengthen the financial sector.
“… an effort that we have been making over time in recognition of the very important and strong symbiotic relationship between economic growth on the one hand and financial sector development on the other.”
The Senior Minister told the National Assembly that over time, the administration has been bringing to the Parliament and enacting modern financial sector legislations, all comprising critical elements of a comprehensive legal architecture which would in turn establish a robust institutional structure for a strong, stable and well-regulated financial system.
The pieces of legislation in the financial sector, he noted, form part of government’s broad agenda to build and strengthen the legal framework and the administration has remained committed to working with all stakeholders, including consumers and the private sector, in supporting business development in Guyana.
According to the release, the banking and financial sector is an important sector government has been placing specific focus on in order to empower citizens to benefit from the massive economic transformation taking place across the country.
Meanwhile, Minister of Tourism, Industry and Commerce, Oneidge Walrond, said that the piece of legislation is “critical and” will pave the way for creating a more modern, inclusive and efficient system for secure lending in Guyana. She posited that it represents another milestone in the journey to transform Guyana’s economic landscape by fostering financial inclusion, empowering small- and medium-sized enterprises and increasing access to credit.
“The Bill seeks to introduce a comprehensive modern and inclusive legal framework to govern security rights in movable assets. Its primary goal is to further modernise Guyana’s secure transaction system, addressing inefficiency and creating a unified, efficient, and technology-enabled structure aligned with international best practices,” the minister explained.
The release also informed that Senior Minister Singh also tabled in the National Assembly, the Financial Institutions (Amendment) Bill 2024, which caters for the establishment of representative offices by foreign financial institutions. It pointed out that representative offices of foreign banks bring international experience and technology and allow these institutions to showcase the products and services that can complement and enhance the domestic banking system.
