Camana Bay becoming Cayman’s banking hub

Butterfield's announcement this week that it would be consolidating its Camana Bay and Governors Square operations, with plans to expand the physical footprint of the Camana Bay Banking Centre, has put the spotlight firmly on Camana Bay as the new banking hub for the Cayman Islands. Their Governors Square Banking Centre, which is currently closed, will now not reopen, they advised.

Mike McWatt, Managing Director of Butterfield in Cayman, said that with growth at Camana Bay, they had made a strategic decision to focus on and expand their presence there to benefit clients. Staff previously at Governors Square had already been redeployed and they would be increasing their client service team at their Camana Bay Banking Centre.

Butterfield opened its Camana Bay branch in early 2020 and services it clients there with a full suite of banking services, in addition to designated meeting spaces for appointments with the investment, corporate banking, lending and trust teams.

But they were not the first retail bank to head to Cayman’s new town. In January 2008, Cayman National Bank became the first to open a branch in this blossoming new town. At that time, the then CNB President Ormond Williams said they opened to give their clients a more convenient banking experience by opening at this location, outside of the busy George Town capital, a location which had traditionally been the centre for banking in Cayman. Indeed, it was in George Town that banks such as Barclays and Bank of Nova Scotia first opened more than half a century ago, kick-starting Cayman’s phenomenal rise as one of the most important offshore financial services hubs in the world.

In 2018, Scotiabank also decided that Camana Bay should be the focus for their Cayman operations, moving its Cayman Islands main branch to 18 Forum Lane in Camana Bay. At the time, Scotiabank created a new digital branch facility called Scotia Centre which occupies approximately 19,000 square feet of space over two floors. At the opening of their new centre, the Managing Director of Scotiabank & Trust (Cayman) Ltd, Dwight Burrows, said that Camana Bay provided a number of benefits for both their staff and customers. The new branch provided a central location, free and accessible parking and modern facilities in close proximity to necessary amenities, he confirmed.

The expansion of Cayman’s retail banks at this central location is a reflection of the increasing importance residents place on Camana Bay as its business community diversifies away from the capital.