Legal Framework

The Eastern Caribbean Securities Exchange (ECSE) was incorporated in the Federation of St Christopher and Nevis under the Companies Act of 1996 as a public limited liability company. It is licensed as a Securities Exchange under the Securities Act of 2001, a uniform regional body of legislation in Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, Montserrat, St Christopher and Nevis, Saint Lucia, and St Vincent and the Grenadines. The Act provides for the protection of the investing public by creating the Eastern Caribbean Securities Regulatory Commission (ECSRC) that regulates the securities market, securities exchanges, persons engaged in securities business and the public issue of securities.

The ECSE is also licensed as a Self-Regulatory Organisation by the ECSRC under the Act.

The Eastern Caribbean Central Securities Depository (ECCSD) is a wholly owned subsidiary of the ECSE.   It was also incorporated in St Christopher and Nevis in 2001 as public limited liability company, under the 1996 Companies Act. The ECCSD is licensed and by the ECSRC, under the Securities Act of 2001, as a Clearing Agency and as a Securities Registry.  It is also licensed as a Self-Regulatory Organisation.