Written by Jamar Arthur-Selman

With over 60 years of experience in the global financial services sector, Barbados is no stranger to the international community. Fully equipped to meet the complex needs of intragroup and external debt financing and administration, it remains a trusted hub for global clients.

The key to this support lies in a strong yet flexible regulatory environment, backed by top-tier expertise in legal, tax, accounting, investment and financing. Combined with responsive service providers and investor-focused legislation that is globally competitive, it ensures seamless setup and operational support.

Debt financing and debt administration

Barbados has become the jurisdiction of choice for intragroup Debt Financing and Debt Administration, as well as a key link in the chain for public debt listings in other territories. Debt Administration in Barbados specifically has quickly become one of the growing core services offered to clients headquartered in the USA, Canada and Europe.

Debt administration in this context involves managing, reporting and monitoring all aspects of financing to ensure compliance with loan documentation. This process minimizes the risk of financial defaults while safeguarding the lender’s financial objectives.

This includes monitoring interest and principal repayments, issuing notices and invoices, providing treasury support functions, managing accounting and reporting activities. Regularly assessing the financial condition of borrowers and effectively monitoring and managing debt repayments in line with financing documentation and internal policies adds significant value to multinational corporations.

International financial services center

As a responsible international financial services hub, Barbados complies with global standards to ensure that finance business is conducted with the required substance. This includes employing qualified staff (or outsourced professionals from local service providers) to carry out core income-generating activities in Barbados, with strategic decisions on financing made by qualified board members during board meetings held locally.

Directors and employees are also actively involved in setting funding terms, determining the duration of financing, monitoring and revising agreements, and managing risks associated with the relevant debt.

Debt Administration is an integral part of the core activities and Barbados service providers and directors assist by providing key services such as:

• Managing all aspects of collections including issuance of interest invoices, maintaining and monitoring payment and interest schedules
• Conducting creditworthiness assessments of new and existing borrowers to ensure they are or remain in good standing
• Preparing cashflow forecasts, budgets and management accounts to ensure liquidity to meet deliverables
• Reviewing independent debt financing analysis and making recommendations to the board on renewal terms and new issuances
• Presentation of management reports to the board of directors with all relevant information
• Reviewing loan agreements and conducting periodic compliance assessments of borrowers to ensure compliance with key provisions and to predict potential events of default.

Specialized service providers administer loan portfolios of corporate clients with aggregate loan values typically ranging from hundreds of millions to several billions of dollars. Some of the industries being supported globally from the financing activities of Barbados subsidiaries include the energy, financial services, transportation and chemical sectors.

Above and beyond

Beyond Debt Administration services, local service providers assist with managing financial audits for lenders and ensuring all regulatory filings, including corporate and tax, are completed. This helps keep a company in good standing and prevents any negative impact on core operations of the business.

This article was originally published in the 2025 edition of the Barbados International Finance and Business Magazine which you can view here.