News Americas, MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, Thurs. December 18, 2025: The Setai Hotels, one of the world’s most celebrated names in luxury hospitality and Toronto-based Altree Developments, a leader in international real estate, today announced a strategic partnership and the next chapter in its global expansion.

Vie L’Ven is evolving into its next chapter through a new partnership with The Setai, the globally celebrated hospitality brand known for its refined approach to service and design. The primary hotel will now debut as The Setai St. Maarten, a luxurious 205-key and private villas set along the pristine shores of Indigo Bay. This collaboration marks The Setai’s highly anticipated Caribbean debut and a major step in the brand’s continued growing international portfolio. Expanding beyond its established destinations in the U.S. and the Middle East, this partnership brings together The Setai’s legacy of refined hospitality with Altree’s vision for world-class residential development, merging two forces known for excellence in design, service and craftsmanship. Construction is underway, with completion expected for 2028.

​​“We are thrilled to bring The Setai to the shores of St. Maarten, a destination that perfectly complements our vision of timeless luxury and cultural inspiration,” said the Nakash Family, owners of The Setai. “This project marks an exciting next chapter for our brand as we continue to grow globally, always guided by the principles of authenticity, sophistication, and unparalleled guest experience.”

Committed to redefining Caribbean luxury, the concept for The Setai St. Maarten has been brought to life by renowned partners Studio Munge, HKS Architects and Leading Hotels of The World, all of whom have been recognized globally for their dedication to creating world-class properties.

The Resort offerings will remain anchored with signature amenities that will include a beach club with dedicated cabanas and butler service, a Les Clefs d’Or concierge team, three pools, including an adults-only oasis, a 30,000 square foot Destination Spa, tennis and pickleball courts, on-beach water sports, a children’s playroom, childcare programs and access to a protected nature reserve.

Extending this same standard of excellence to its culinary program, the resort will feature five restaurant concepts, including Ocean Grill Beach Club and Jaya, both inspired by the acclaimed culinary concepts of The Setai, Miami Beach.

Zev Mandelbaum, President and CEO of Altree Developments, shared, “From the very beginning, our vision has been to create something extraordinary for the island. Teaming up with the Nakash family to bring The Setai’s first Caribbean property to life allows us to honor St. Maarten’s beauty and distinct character while shaping a new level of hospitality for the region.”

Blending The Setai’s renowned standard of luxury with the natural beauty of the Caribbean, the resort will feature both residential and hotel accommodations. The Setai St. Maarten will offer an array of spacious one to four-bedroom layouts, spanning from approximately 620 to over 2,000+ square feet and dual key residence options expanding up to 6,000 square feet.

The debut of The Setai St. Maarten marks a defining moment for the island, introducing a level of craftsmanship and service that will position St. Maarten among the world’s most distinguished luxury destinations.

For The Setai St. Maarten sales inquiries, contact Sales Representatives:

Anne-Wytske Hoekstra (annewytske@thesetaistmaarten.com)

Shirley van der Borden (shirley@thesetaistmaarten.com)

You can also call +1-721-544-1545, visit thesetaistmaarten.com, or tour the model suite at the presentation gallery on Indigo Bay Boulevard, St. Maarten. You can find The Setai St. Maarten on Instagram and Facebook.

About Altree Developments

Altree Developments is a leader in the international real estate landscape, rooted in a 70-year multi-generational family legacy in the development industry. Under the visionary leadership of Zev Mandelbaum, Altree is redefining urban living by transforming strategic residential and commercial sites into leading destinations. With an admirable portfolio that includes ultra-luxury condominiums and expansive master-planned communities, Altree’s influence stretches across some of the most coveted addresses in Canada, America, and now, Saint Maarten. Driven by an unwavering commitment to innovation and luxury, Altree’s projects are designed to stand the test of time, offering unparalleled value and shaping the future of urban living. For more information, visit altreedevelopments.com.

About The Setai Hotels

The Setai Hotels is a collection of privately owned hotels that represent a vision of unprecedented luxury and service, with a calm and serene ambiance at the heart of each property. The hotels offer connectivity to their host cities while also creating a discreet escape and utmost privacy for its guests. Its Miami Beach flagship holds membership with The Leading Hotels of the World; is recognized as an AAA Five Diamond hotel and Michelin Guide Key holder; and has been awarded in the Condé Nast Traveler’s Readers’ Choice Awards, as well as by the coveted Forbes Travel Guide Five Star Award consecutively since 2015. In 2018, the brand introduced the luxury, sophistication and renowned service to Tel Aviv as a LHW hotel in the historic old Jaffa region, followed by a third location in the Sea of Galilee. Looking ahead, the Setai St. Maarten is anticipated to open in 2028 as a LHW property. For more information, visit thesetaihotel.com.

By NAN Business Editor

News Americas, WASHINGTON, D.C., Mon. Dec. 15, 2025: Caribbean Competition is weak and holding back growth across the region as well as in Latin America, according to a new flagship report released by the Inter-American Development Bank, (IDB). The report, titled Markets for Development: Improving Lives through Competition, forms part of the IDB’s Development in the Americas series, which uses rigorous data and economic analysis to outline policy priorities to boost prosperity in the region.

Competition As A Driver of Growth

FLASHBACK – People travel by bus during a nationwide blackout in Santo Domingo on November 11, 2025. Santa Domingo found itself without electricity Tuesday as the Dominican Republic’s energy company announced a blackout of unspecified scope, caused by a “transmission system failure.” (Photo by Eddy Vittini / AFP) (Photo by EDDY VITTINI/AFP via Getty Images)

One of the report’s central findings is that markets in Latin America and the Caribbean are, on average, about four times more concentrated than those in advanced economies – meaning fewer dominant firms control larger portions of goods and services. This market power translates into higher markups, limited consumer choice, and slower productivity growth, according to the Bank.

If markets across the region operated with the same level of competitive intensity as in advanced economies, the IDB estimates per-capita output (GDP per person) could rise by about 11%, while income inequality might shrink by around 6%.

Strong competition is shown to benefit not only consumers through lower prices but also workers through higher real wages and expanded employment opportunities.

Business Environment Challenges

The report highlights several structural barriers that hinder competition, including:

Market Fragmentation: High logistics costs and poor connectivity within and between markets make it harder for firms to scale and compete.

Regulatory Complexity: Excessive or poorly designed regulations discourage new entrants and protect entrenched incumbents.

Weak Institutions: Many competition authorities in the region have limited resources or independence, reducing their ability to enforce fair market rules.

These conditions contribute to the so-called “missing middle” — a shortage of medium-sized enterprises that, in more competitive economies, help drive innovation and job creation.

Implications for Businesses and Consumers

For business leaders, the findings point to a pressing need for reforms that unlock competitive pressures:

Reducing red tape and simplifying market entry

Investing in infrastructure that lowers transaction costs

Strengthening antitrust enforcement and regulatory oversight

Lower market concentration could empower small and medium-sized firms to grow, broaden supply chains, and stimulate innovation across sectors such as telecommunications, banking, and health care.

Consumers in Latin America and the Caribbean currently face markups that are estimated to be higher than in advanced markets, while workers in many sectors see wages that reflect a weaker competitive environment.

Policy Priorities and Reforms

The IDB calls on governments to pursue reforms that balance regulation with competition enhancement. Priority areas include:

Modernizing competition laws

Investing in logistics and digital connectivity

Empowering competition agencies with greater independence

Streamlining business regulations to reduce barriers for new entrants

According to the report, countries that adopt such policies may attract more domestic and foreign investment, improve productivity, and create better-paying jobs.

A Roadmap For The Region’s Future

Although Latin America and the Caribbean have achieved macroeconomic stability in recent decades, long-term productivity growth has lagged behind global peers. The IDB report provides a data-driven blueprint focused on competition as a central engine for economic dynamism – offering a new lens for policymakers and business leaders seeking to unlock latent growth potential.

For markets across the hemisphere, encouraging fair competition is not just an economic ideal – it may be the most practical path to inclusive growth and heightened prosperity in the coming decade.

News Americas, Fort Lauderdale, FL, Tues. Dec. 2, 2205: Guyana-born, US-based Caribbean immigrant entrepreneur and media leader Felicia J. Persaud, the founder and publisher of News Americas, has quietly made history.

AI Capital Exchange, the world’s first AI-powered debt lending platform connecting institutional investors, lenders, agencies and borrowers globally, created by Felicia J. Persaud

After four months of building in silence, Persaud has soft-launched AI Capital Exchange, the first AI-powered debt capital platform in the world – built entirely by her, a non-tech founder and Caribbean immigrant.

The platform, available at aicapitalexchange.net, uses artificial intelligence to match qualified borrowers with institutional investors, lenders, and investment agencies across the U.S., Caribbean, Latin America, Europe, Africa, and Asia. It is powered by Invest Caribbean.

For the Caribbean – long restricted by limited access to financing — the launch represents a breakthrough moment.

“AI Capital Exchange is about leveling the playing field,” Persaud shared. “It proves that global innovation can come from our community — and that immigrants and non-tech founders can build world-changing technology.”

What the Platform Does

AI Capital Exchange pre-qualifies borrowers and then connects them to lenders for:
• Commercial real estate projects
• Renewable energy ventures
• Equipment financing
• Tech startups
• Business expansions
• Government and infrastructure capital

Lenders and investors can join to access verified, AI-organized deal flow. Investment agencies can showcase national investment programs to attract foreign capital.

A Caribbean Immigrant Building Global Infrastructure

What makes this launch extraordinary is the journey behind it.

Persaud — who migrated from Guyana with no coding background — built every component of the platform herself using AI tools.

“This was hundreds of hours of work, built with discipline, faith, and determination,” she said. “It is proof that where you come from does not limit where you can build.”

The platform has also been submitted to the India AI Global Impact Challenge 2026, marking its entry on the world stage.

Explore or Support The Platform

Test the platform (pilot phase): https://aicapitalexchange.net

Investors interested in supporting the platform’s growth can connect here

About Felicia J. Persaud

Felicia J. Persaud is a Guyana-born, U.S.-based journalist and media and investment entrepreneur, widely known for her groundbreaking work in Caribbean diaspora media, her advocacy for Caribbean Census recognition, and her efforts to expand investment opportunities across the region.

By Felicia J. Persaud

News Americas, NY, NY, Thurs. Nov. 20, 2025: The latest Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) report delivers the clearest warning yet: Caribbean economies must urgently diversify, deepen regional integration, and expand into higher-value exports as global trade undergoes a historic shift.

Tourism Can No Longer Carry the Caribbean

According to the International Trade Outlook for Latin America and the Caribbean 2025, U.S. tariffs – imposed and adjusted repeatedly this year – are reshaping global trade patterns. While major exporters in Asia now face tariffs as high as 100%, Caribbean countries face an average effective tariff of only ~10% when exporting to the U.S. This positions the region for potential export gains in key sectors like apparel, agribusiness, medical devices, and digitally delivered services.

But the report makes another point even more urgent: the region’s overreliance on tourism is becoming economically dangerous.

ECLAC notes that foreign direct investment (FDI) in the region has fallen 53% in 2025 – largely due to global uncertainty, new U.S. trade policies, and a geopolitical climate increasingly hostile to low-diversified economies. Caribbean service exports remain strong, but the bulk still comes from tourism, a sector ECLAC warns is “highly vulnerable to climate shocks, external demand fluctuations, and rising global risks.”

The call is clear: the Caribbean cannot depend on tourism alone in the era of climate change, global volatility, and rising trade uncertainty.

Tourism Can No Longer Carry the Caribbean

The region’s dependence on tourism has always been a double-edged sword – lucrative in good times, devastating in bad ones. Today, that fragility is magnified by a historic convergence of pressures:

Tourism alone cannot withstand:

Climate change – Stronger hurricanes, higher sea levels, reef die-off, saltwater intrusion, and chronic flooding.

Rising insurance costs – Premiums for hotels and coastal assets have more than doubled in parts of the region, threatening closures.

Extreme weather – Hurricane Melissa’s catastrophic destruction in Jamaica underscores the regional vulnerability.

Airline disruptions – Higher costs, route rationalization, and climate-related flight impacts reduce visitor arrivals.

U.S. economic slowdown – The region’s largest tourism source market is tightening its spending.

Geopolitical tension – Tariff wars, instability, and shifting U.S. foreign policy all drive unpredictable shocks.

Cruise ship dominance – Mass tourism keeps growing while local earnings stay disproportionately low.

Each of these forces alone is problematic. Together, they make tourism structurally unreliable as a long-term development strategy.

And the evidence is already here.

Jamaica’s $10 Billion Warning

Jamaica’s government now estimates that damage from Hurricane Melissa will require US$10 billion in reconstruction funding. Hotels, roads, beaches, homes, farms, water systems, telecommunications, and energy infrastructure all suffered heavy losses.

This is not a one-off event – it is the new climate reality. Rebuilding the same tourism-centric model guarantees that:

the next extreme event will wipe out gains again,

governments will remain trapped in recovery cycles,

and long-term growth will be permanently constrained.

The Caribbean cannot keep rebuilding the same economic model that keeps breaking.

So What Comes Next? A Pivot the Region Can No Longer Delay

If tourism cannot carry the Caribbean through the next 20 years of climate and geopolitical volatility, what can? Three pillars now present the strongest path forward — and all align with ECLAC’s recommendations and emerging global market shifts.

1. Agri-Tech & Food Security

ECLAC highlights that the region imports over US$6 billion in food annually — despite fertile land, tropical conditions, and new technologies capable of boosting yields even in drought-prone zones.

A Caribbean agri-tech push can include:

climate-resilient greenhouses

controlled-environment agriculture

agro-processing for export

aquaculture + blue economy tech

digital supply-chain management

smart irrigation and water innovation

This is not theory – investors are already moving into these areas because the opportunity is massive and urgent.

2. Modern Services & Tech Exports

ECLAC’s most troubling statistic: The Caribbean represents less than 2% of global modern service exports. This is the region’s greatest untapped economic engine.

Key opportunities include:

digital outsourcing

fintech and compliance services

medical transcription + health IT

animation, design, digital creative industries

AI-enabled back-office services

These are sectors where:

hurricanes cannot cancel revenue,

diaspora talent is abundant,

and global demand is surging.

3. Nearshoring, Light Manufacturing & Logistics

The U.S.–China trade restructuring and rising tariffs have created a rare opening in Caribbean shipping lanes. The region can scale:

medical device assembly

electronics + small components

apparel and fashion manufacturing

pharmaceutical packaging

logistics hubs tied to Miami, Houston, and Panama

ECLAC estimates these sectors offer the highest potential for “productive transformation” in the next 5–10 years.

The Path Forward

The ECLAC report is both a warning and a roadmap.

The warning:

Tourism – long the Caribbean’s comfort zone—is no longer strong enough to withstand the coming storms, economic or climatic.

The roadmap:

Diversify now.
Strengthen trade links.
Move into higher-value sectors.
Mobilize investment differently.
Solve for resilience, not vulnerability.

The Caribbean can no longer afford to be a single-pillar economy. It must become a multi-sector, export-oriented, climate-resilient region capable of withstanding uncertainty – not collapsing under it.

EDITOR’S NOTE: The writer is a Caribbean-born journalist and entrepreneur, founder of Invest Caribbean, and CEO of ICN Group.

News Americas, GEORGETOWN, Guyana, Weds. Nov. 12, 2025: The Government of Guyana has inked a new Production Sharing Agreement (PSA) for shallow-water Block S4 offshore Guyana with a consortium led by global energy giants QatarEnergy, TotalEnergies, and PETRONAS.

The deal, signed through the Ministry of Natural Resources, marks another milestone in Guyana’s growing oil and gas industry. Under the agreement, TotalEnergies will serve as the operator with a 40% stake, while QatarEnergy and PETRONAS will hold 35% and 25% respectively.

The Government of Guyana has inked a new Production Sharing Agreement (PSA) for shallow-water Block S4 offshore Guyana with a consortium led by global energy giants QatarEnergy, TotalEnergies, and PETRONAS.

Awarded under Guyana’s first-ever licensing round in 2022, the PSA includes a US$15 million signing bonus and underscores continued investor confidence in the country’s hydrocarbon sector.

Minister of Natural Resources, Vickram Bharrat, hailed the signing as a signal of Guyana’s global appeal. “We are pleased to welcome QatarEnergy, TotalEnergies and PETRONAS as new partners in Guyana’s petroleum sector,” Bharrat said. “This investment demonstrates continued international confidence in Guyana’s transparent and robust licensing framework, and it reflects our government’s commitment to ensuring that the development of our natural resources is done sustainably and for the benefit of all Guyanese.”

Block S4 covers roughly 1,788 square kilometers, located between 50 and 100 kilometers off Guyana’s coast, in water depths ranging from 30 to 100 meters. The Ministry said exploration will adhere to both national regulatory standards and international best practices for environmental protection.

TotalEnergies’ Vice President of Exploration for the Americas, Daniel Larrañaga, expressed eagerness to begin operations, saying:

“We want to go fast. We want to explore this basin as soon as we can.”

The Ministry of Natural Resources reaffirmed the government’s commitment to environmental stewardship, transparency, and maximizing local participation in all petroleum activities.

With this latest agreement, Guyana continues to solidify its status as one of the world’s fastest-emerging energy producers—balancing rapid sector growth with a pledge to responsible development and national benefit.