ST. CROIX — Gov. Albert Bryan Jr. on Wednesday announced plans to establish a new financial district in downtown Christiansted intended to attract banking, investment, insurance, securities and financial-technology businesses to St. Croix as part of a broader effort to diversify the Virgin Islands economy.
The initiative, branded “3rd Wall Street,” encompasses what Government House calls the CASE Capital Markets–3rd Wall Street Financial District Hub and Alexander Hamilton Global Financial Centers. The administration said the development would be headquartered in downtown Christiansted within a federally designated Qualified Opportunity Zone.
The proposed district is intended to attract firms involved in banking, bond underwriting, insurance and reinsurance, securities and commodities trading, investment management, financial technology and related services. Government House described the project as an attempt to connect St. Croix more deeply with financial markets in the mainland United States and overseas.
“We have spent the last several years working to modernize the Virgin Islands and create the conditions for new industries to take root here,” Mr. Bryan said. “The real opportunity with 3rd Wall Street is not simply bringing financial companies to St. Croix. It is creating careers, building expertise and giving more Virgin Islanders the opportunity to participate in an industry that can generate new economic activity and opportunity for years to come.”
Central to the proposal is a planned public-private partnership between the Government of the Virgin Islands and Global Impact Assets LLC, which Government House described as an infrastructure-finance firm specializing in private-credit bond underwriting.
According to the administration, Global Impact Assets intends to establish operations on St. Croix while participating in the development of a specialized Virgin Islands-based bond market.
Bond offerings developed through the initiative are expected to be marketed as “Hamilton Bonds,” drawing on Alexander Hamilton’s historical connection to St. Croix. Government House said the proposed market would be supported by specialized underwriting and correspondent-banking operations based in the territory.
The announcement does not yet establish when those bonds could be issued, who would issue them, how they would be structured or backed, or when the proposed financial market would begin operating.
Global Impact Assets Chairman and CEO Camilo Salomon is expected to visit St. Croix in the coming days while the parties work through implementation details, according to Government House.
Other prospective financial-services companies are also completing incorporation, registration and application processes associated with the initiative, the administration said. Those prospective businesses include firms involved in international currency exchange and other cross-border financial services.
That distinction places the project, for now, firmly in a development and implementation phase rather than representing an already operating financial district. Government House said participating companies, implementation timelines and additional details about development in Christiansted will be announced as agreements and regulatory processes are completed.
The administration says the broader strategy is to capitalize on the Virgin Islands' status within the U.S. financial and regulatory system while combining that position with existing economic-development incentives to attract investment and create new industries.
The concept is not entirely new. Mr. Bryan credited Anthony Weeks, the Virgin Islands Special Economic Envoy to Taiwan and the Asia-Pacific Region and chairman and CEO of SEDI-CASE, with developing the initiative over several years.
“Anthony has remained committed to the idea that the Virgin Islands can play a much larger role in international finance,” Mr. Bryan said. “What began years ago as a proposal for a Virgin Islands stock exchange has evolved into a broader financial ecosystem. Now the work is to turn that vision into real businesses, real investment and real opportunities for Virgin Islanders.”
Government House had previously promoted the broader SEDI-CASE initiative as a vehicle for connecting the Virgin Islands with mainland and international markets. Earlier this year, Mr. Bryan led a Virgin Islands delegation to New York as part of an economic-development push centered partly on improving access to U.S. capital markets.
Wednesday’s announcement represents a more specific effort to physically center that financial-services strategy in Christiansted.
But several significant details remain unresolved publicly, including the companies that ultimately will participate, the scale of private investment committed to the district, the number and type of jobs projected, the precise facilities to be occupied or developed downtown, and the regulatory approvals necessary for the contemplated financial activities.
Government House said those details will be released as agreements and regulatory processes advance.
