Trinidad and Tobago’s Ministry of Finance published the Minister of Finance’s address to the Trinidad and Tobago Stock Exchange Capital Markets Conference 2025, setting out a package of pension-system measures and capital market initiatives aimed at widening citizen investment and supporting long-term fiscal sustainability. The speech flagged actuarial estimates that, absent action, the National Insurance Fund could be depleted by 2033 or 2034, and set out planned parametric changes including a 3 percent increase in contribution rates in January 2026, a further 3 percent increase in January 2027, and a gradual increase in retirement age beginning in 2028. On capital markets, the Government plans to create a state-sponsored real estate investment trust backed by government-owned, income-generating properties, with shares listed on the Trinidad and Tobago Stock Exchange to allow citizens and institutions to participate and receive dividends. It also intends to launch a $1 billion National Investment Fund Bond in fiscal year 2026, backed by shares in First Citizens Group Financial Holdings and described as a tax-free investment, alongside a review of tax incentives for small and medium enterprises that list on the Exchange and the launch of a National Innovation and Incubator Programme to help firms scale toward SME Market listings. Market infrastructure priorities include ongoing discussions with the Exchange to digitise the issuance of Government bonds, aligned with the National Digital Payment Strategy and the Central Bank’s payment systems modernisation. The contribution-rate increases and retirement-age changes follow the timelines stated for 2026 to 2028, while the National Investment Fund Bond is scheduled for fiscal year 2026. The speech did not specify timelines for the REIT launch, SME tax incentive changes, or the digitisation of government bond issuance.

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