The Treaty of Basseterre, in which these institutions and others have been embedded, provides the overarching framework for the functioning of the OECS arrangements.
While it may be the case that banks in the end hold fewer credits on their balance sheets, I believe that it would be wrong to say that banks now play a less important role in credit markets. Banks, as well as securities firms, are at the centre of a new risk intermediation landscape that is increasingly based on traded products.