Speaking at a recent breakfast forum hosted by BVI Finance, McCoy said persons who travel to the BVI for financial services business give the territory a chance to improve its airlift. 

“One of the things that’s very important to the BVI is airlift and we’ve had conversations about corporate travel. The better you (financial services) do and the more persons come into the territory for corporate travel, the easier it is for the BVI Tourist Board and the government to negotiate with airlines to come into the territory,” McCoy told leaders within the financial services industry. “Once we know the dates in terms of when people are coming and leaving the territory for corporate travel, we can better negotiate with these airlines.”

The financial services and tourism sectors are the biggest contributors to the BVI’s Gross Domestic Product but the links between the two are not often highlighted within the territory.

BVI’s financial services and tourism sectors interdependent

BVI Finance CEO Elise Donovan, who was also present at the forum, took time to highlight other ways in which both industries benefit from each other. As an example, she said the money the government earns from financial services helps to improve roads and social infrastructure that tourists also enjoy. 

She also said hotels benefit from corporate travel and added that revenue earned from financial services helps provide funds that the government use to market and improve the tourism product.

“I think it’s a symbiotic relationship — we are very much interrelated and interdependent,” Donovan said.

Recently, Premier Dr Natalio Wheatley said the government is exploring linkages between tourism and the financial services industry with the hope of finding new ways to capitalise and earn from these areas.