The Tribune

By FAY SIMMONS

TRIBUNE Business Reporter

jsimmons@tribunemedia.net

THE BAHAMIAN digital currency, the Sand Dollar, continues to account for less than 1 per cent of retail transactions in this nation despite the existence of between120,000 and 130,000 digital wallets, the Central Bank’s governor said yesterday.

John Rolle, addressing its 2026 third quarter economic briefing, said the Central Bank is eyeing the new fast-payments system and expanded merchant acceptance to drive wider adoption.

He added that use of the Sand Dollar remains modest, with most wallet holders conducting relatively few and low-value transactions because of limitations in the number of merchants accepting digital payments.

Mr Rolle said the Central Bank is working on developing an instant or fast-payment system that will make the Sand Dollar more readily accessible to businesses already receiving electronic and card payments, while also allowing consumers to make direct payments between bank accounts and digital wallets.

"We see modest growth in terms of use of Sand Dollars," said Mr Rolle. "I think we still see about maybe less than 1 percent of total retail transactions in The Bahamas taking place through digital wallets."

He added that the main constraint is not the connection between digital wallets and the banking system, but the limited merchant network through which consumers can spend Sand Dollars.

"The next important movement is to strengthen and build out the merchant ecosystem," said Mr Rolle.

The Central Bank has been developing fast-payment infrastructure to make electronic transactions more seamless, allowing payments to move directly between bank accounts across different financial institutions, as well as between bank accounts and digital wallets.

Mr Rolle said the system would transform the point-of-sale payment experience and allow businesses to receive funds immediately without the holds or delays that can accompany some existing payment arrangements.

The Central Bank is also working to identify a technology provider to upgrade the Government's payment infrastructure, with the aim of having the public sector fully equipped to accept Sand Dollars during 2027.

Mr Rolle described government participation as particularly important because of its position as the country's largest merchant.

"The Government is the largest merchant in The Bahamas, in any country, and so we're going to have that merchant over the course of 2027 fully equipped to operate with Sand Dollar," he said.

He added that the Government's integration with the fast-payment infrastructure will help make the Bahamian digital currency more accessible to consumers while expanding the number of places where it could be used.

Mr Rolle said the digital wallet system already allows funds to move between bank accounts and wallets through the Automated Clearing House (ACH), but broader adoption would depend on making payments more convenient for merchants and consumers.

He also acknowledged that digital wallets remain a relatively new experience for many Bahamians, with the current level of usage reflecting the limited opportunities available to spend the currency.

Asked how much currency was circulating in the wallets, Mr Rolle said he did not have the precise figures available, but indicated that annual digital wallet transactions exceeded $50m.

However, he cautioned against treating the number of wallets as an indication of widespread transaction activity, explaining that the average user was still conducting a small number of low-value transactions.

The Central Bank's planned fast-payment system is therefore expected to play a significant role in the next stage of the Sand Dollar's development, particularly by connecting more merchants and making digital payments easier to accept across the economy.