Sunshine, a Leading Local Fintech, Raises Serious Concerns Over Proposed Virtual Assets Bill, Warns of Significant Setback for Industry & Country
PORT OF SPAIN, TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO – Wednesday 17th September 2025 – Sunshine, a Trinidad and Tobago-based Stablecoin Exchange, Remittance Service, and Financial Technology company, today issued a statement expressing profound concern over the potential consequences of The Virtual Assets and Virtual Assets Service Providers Bill, 2025 (VAVASPB), as currently drafted.
While Sunshine unequivocally supports the smart and effective regulation of the digital asset industry, the company believes this Bill in its present form is counterproductive. Instead of creating a framework for responsible growth, it risks halting the entire industry, effectively telling operators to "stop everything, check back in 2028."
Sunshine is a homegrown success story, founded in 2022 by Visionary, Entrepreneur and Artist, Jarryon Paul. The company was created to address a critical need: providing the people of Trinidad and Tobago with safe and compliant access to stablecoins like USDT and USDC. Since its inception, Sunshine has served approximately 2000 Trinbagonian customers with a steadfast commitment to transparency and integrity.
The company has implemented full Know Your Customer (KYC) procedures for every customer, robust Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) practices from day one, and maintains rigorous transaction monitoring and sanctions screening, mirroring the standards of any traditional financial institution.
“We took these steps not because the law forced us to, but because we care deeply about our customers and the long-term health of this emerging industry. We are a TT-based company that has operated successfully in the digital assets industry since 2022. We would very much appreciate an opportunity to be honestly heard and to speak with the Government or its representatives on the consequences of the VAVASPB, which we believe will set the industry back significantly."
The company warns that if the Bill passes as written, the result would be the abrupt shutdown of compliant, homegrown operations like Sunshine. This would deprive the legitimate digital assets community and nationals of Trinidad and Tobago of safe, regulated services while doing little to stop bad actors, who would simply be driven further underground with less oversight.
Sunshine points to strong global legislative examples—such as the GENIUS Act (2025) in the USA, MiCA (2023) in Europe, the DARE (2020) Act in The Bahamas, and DABA (2018) in Bermuda—that successfully balance vital consumer protection with support for innovation and economic growth.
Our stance is simple: regulate the industry—but do it in a way that protects people, supports innovation, and builds the future. We believe Trinidad and Tobago should aim higher. We have a Ministry of Public Administration and Artificial Intelligence; innovation is part of our National Vision. Our regulation should reflect that same forward-thinking spirit.
Sunshine welcomes a discussion with any member of the business news team to elaborate on our position and the specific aspects of the Bill that are cause for concern.
About Sunshine
Sunshine is a Trinidad and Tobago-based Stablecoin Exchange, Remittance Service & Financial Technology Company founded in 2022 by Visionary, Entrepreneur and Artist, Jarryon Paul. Born out of a need to help Trinbagonians access stablecoins (USDT and USDC), Sunshine has built a reputation for its care, transparency and integrity, serving nearly 2000 local customers with full KYC and AML/CFT compliance from its first day of operation.
Founder,
Sunshine
Jarryon Paul.