Mrs. Enid Zephyrine – Chairman

Mrs. Enid Zephyrine is the Director of the Strategic Management and Execution Office in the Ministry of Finance with over thirty years’ shared experience in financial management and development finance in the Public Sector.

She served as a Senior Advisor and member of the Board of Directors of the World Bank Group, in Washington D.C. from 2012 to 2014, as Executive Director Investment/Divestment with responsibility for monitoring the State Enterprises under the purview of the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago (GORTT) and as Director, Economic Management with responsibility for the macro fiscal and debt management portfolios of the GORTT.

Mrs. Zephyrine is a Chartered Certified Accountant and Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (FCCA). She is the holder of a Bachelor of Science. (B.Sc.) Honours in Applied Accounting from Oxford Brookes University and a Master of Science (MSc.) in International Money, Finance and Investment from Brunel University.

Mrs. Zephyrine was appointed a Commissioner and Deputy Chairman of the Board of Commissioners on April 25, 2016, serving two consecutive terms in that position until being appointed Chairman on October 12, 2020, to serve for a term of one (1) year. She was reappointed on November 15, 2020, for a period of two (2) years.

 

Mr. Douglas Mendes, SC – Chairman

Mr. Douglas Mendes SC is a lawyer, former judge and academic. He was a judge of the Court of Appeal of Belize for the period March 2011 to March 2014 and a temporary judge of the High Court of Trinidad and Tobago during the period April to September 1998. He was also a lecturer in the Faculty of Law at the University of the West Indies (UWI) for a period of 14 years, ending in 2012, when he took up his judicial appointment in Belize. In 2003, he was appointed Senior Counsel and became a member of the Inner Bar of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago.

He has litigated numerous human rights, constitutional and administrative law cases as a senior legal practitioner across the Caribbean and before the Caribbean Court of Justice and the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council.
He was the coordinator of the Coalition for Social Justice and Human Rights (1994-1997) and is the Vice President of the Caribbean Centre for Human Rights. He is also the Honorary Legal Counsel of the International Planned Parenthood Federation. In 2011, Mr. Mendes completed a Master of Studies in International Human Rights Law at the University of Oxford (with distinction).

Mr. Mendes was appointed as Chairman of the TTSEC on April 25, 2016 and is currently serving his second term in office effective, April 25, 2018. He will serve in this position for two (2) years.

 

Mrs. Suzette Taylor-Lee Chee 

Mrs. Suzette Taylor-Lee Chee is Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance (Ag.) with effect from September 2015. Prior to her current assignment, she served as Deputy Permanent Secretary from March 2014. Mrs. Taylor-Lee Chee’s portfolio at the Ministry of Finance includes, Public Debt Administration and Management, Macro Fiscal Policy and Programming, Taxation Policy, and the GORTT’s relationship with the Credit Rating Agencies and Multilateral Financial Institutions such as the IMF, World Bank and the IDB. Mrs. Taylor-Lee Chee is also responsible for the Ministry of Finance’s interaction with CARICOM and its various organs and serves on the board of the Barbados-based Caricom Development Fund.

Between 2009 and 2010 she was assigned to the World Bank in Washington DC, as the Government of Trinidad and Tobago’s representative to the World Bank; situated in the office of the Executive Director with responsibility for Brazil, Columbia, the Philippines, Suriname, Haiti, Ecuador, the Dominican Republic and Trinidad and Tobago.
Mrs. Taylor-Lee Chee possesses a B.Sc. degree in Economics from the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine (1991) and a Masters of Business Administration, from Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh Scotland (2007).
Mrs. Taylor-Lee Chee was appointed as a Commissioner on March 17th 2014 and she is currently serving her third term effective April 25, 2018. She will serve in this position for two (2) years.

Mr. Patrick Solomon

Mr. Patrick Solomon is a Central Banker for over twenty years. He started his career in the Bank Inspections department where he spent 15 years and 5 years in other departments. He was also in charge of Internal Audit, Risk Management, Security and Facilities Management.

Mr. Solomon has a balanced blend of experience since he functioned as a Vice President at Citigroup for seven years in the capacity of Head of Compliance and Quality Assurance. He also was seconded for two years to The Unit Trust Corporation of Trinidad and Tobago as part of the Executive Team assisting the Executive Director in establishing and embedding a risk management framework for that entity.

Mr. Solomon is a Fellow of the Chartered Association of Certified Accountants and an Associate of the Institute of Financial Services. He served as President of the Institute of Banking and Finance (IBAF) during the 2003/2004 term and received a Fellowship from that institution in 2005 for his contribution to the development of the institution. In addition he is also a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Trinidad and Tobago (ICATT).

He currently holds the position of Senior Specialist Advisor, Corporate Governance, Controls and Compliance. Mr. Solomon was appointed as a Commissioner of the TTSEC on April 25, 2016 and is currently serving his second term in office effective, April 25, 2018. He will serve in this position for two (2) years.

Ms. Elaine Green

Ms. Elaine Veronica Green is an Attorney-at-Law in private practise and a member of the Bars of Trinidad and Tobago, Grenada and Antigua.

A graduate of the University of the West Indies, Ms Green was admitted to the degree of Bachelor of Laws with Honours in 1991 and was called to the Bar of Trinidad and Tobago in 1993. Her practise covers a wide range of civil, criminal, corporate, conveyancing, regulatory and public law matters. Ms Green acts for private sector clients, ranging from multi-nationals to SME’s and private individuals, public authorities, regulators, and non-governmental organisations by providing advocacy, instructing, advisory and corporate secretarial services. On the criminal side of her practise, she has a particular interest in anti-money-laundering, the prevention of corruption and the confiscation of the proceeds of crime, and she served as Legal Advisor to the Financial Investigations Unit and its parent unit the Counter Drug Crime Task Force from 1997 to 2010 when those units were disbanded. Ms Green has been providing advisory services to successive Directors of Public Prosecutions in Trinidad and Tobago since 1996 and has prosecuted with their fiat matters in the High Court and the Court of Appeal either as Instructing Attorney-at-Law, Junior Counsel or as Counsel in her own right.

Since 2014, Ms Green has been a Director and the Secretary of Youth Business Trinidad & Tobago, non-profit company and accredited member of Youth Business International, which provides finance, mentor ship, training and networking opportunities to youth particularly those who are economically disadvantaged.

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Professor Patrick Watson – Chairman

Professor Patrick K Watson was re-appointed Chairman of the Trinidad and Tobago Securities and Exchange Commission effective March 17, 2014.

In addition to the Chairmanship of the Commission, Professor Watson is The University of the West Indies’ Director of the Sir Arthur Lewis Institute of Social & Economic Studies (SALISES) and Professor of Applied Economics at The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, Trinidad & Tobago. He previously served as Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences from 1995 to 2003 and is the holder of a Master’s and a doctoral degree in Mathematical Economics and Econometrics from the Université de Paris I (Panthéon-Sorbonne) and a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of Leeds.

Mr. Rennie Gosine

Rennie K. Gosine is an attorney-at-law who has been in private practice for the past 18 years. He attended the Cave Hill Campus of The University of the West Indies (UWI) where he obtained his LL.B. and then Sir Hugh Wooding Law School where he obtained his Legal Education Certificate. He was admitted to practise law in 1995.

He has worked with several law firms but now has his own firm in San Fernando. His area of practice is predominantly land, insurance and matrimonial law. Mr. Gosine performs the role of both Instructing and Advocate Attorney at the Supreme Court of Trinidad and Tobago and has appeared as Advocate in several matters before the Court of Appeal.

Mr. Gosine is also associated with several organisations and is a member of the Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board Disciplinary Tribunal.

Dr. Alvin Hilaire

Alvin Hilaire, Ph.D. is currently the Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Trinidad and Tobago: a position which he assumed in April 2013. Prior to that position, he was the Chief Economist and Director of Research at the Bank.

In 1997, Dr. Hilaire assumed duties at the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) headquarters in Washington where he worked in the Policy Development & Review and Western Hemisphere Departments. His work there, focused on IMF policy issues and on several countries including Croatia, Cameroon, Colombia, Nicaragua and Thailand, as well as Caribbean countries like Jamaica, Barbados and St. Kitts and Nevis. From 2006 to 2009, he served as the IMF Resident Representative in Guinea and Sierra Leone. Prior to joining the Fund, he headed the Policy Support Unit of the Central Bank of Trinidad and Tobago.

Dr. Hilaire holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Columbia University (New York) and B.Sc. from the University of the West Indies (St. Augustine). His appointment as a Commissioner was for a two year period effective March 17, 2014.

Ms. Marsha King

Ms. Marsha King is an attorney-at-law who has been in private practice for over twenty five years. She is versed in civil practice and procedure and has handled civil appeal matters, civil matters at the magisterial level as well as civil trials in the capacity of both instructing and advocate attorney.

Ms. King has also contributed articles to the print media and has participated in programmes in the electronic media to advise the public about their legal rights and duties. She is a former tutor at the San Fernando Technical Institute for Extra Mural Studies and has been trained as a mediator in Alternate Dispute Resolution.

Ms. King has been a Commissioner on the Board of the Trinidad and Tobago Securities and Exchange Commission since February 13th 2008 and has served three terms.

 Mr. Ravi Rajcoomar

Mr. Ravi Rajcoomar has been an attorney-at-law for the past twenty four years who has practised predominantly in the criminal arena but has also made appearances in numerous civil cases.

He has been a member of the Criminal Bar Association since its formation and has served on several of its committees over the years. Mr. Rajcoomar is also a senior member of the Council of the Law Association of Trinidad and Tobago and has authored and co-authored articles which have been published in the Lawyer magazine.

Mr. Ravi Rajcoomar was re-appointed as a Commissioner with effect from January 31, 2014 for a two year term.

Mr. Horace Mahara

Mr. Horace Mahara, MBA, MSs, CPA, CIA, FCCA CA was re-appointed as a Commissioner for a two year term beginning January 31, 2014. Commissioner Mahara brings over twenty-five years of diversified experience in the realm of business to the Board of the Trinidad and Tobago Securities and Exchange Commission

He has both international and local expertise in the fields of accounting/auditing, sales and marketing, banking, taxation, real estate and financial advisory services. Mr. Mahara previously served on the Board of the South West Regional Health Authority and is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Trinidad and Tobago.

Ms. Nalinee Khemraj

Ms. Nalinee Khemraj, MBA, PGDip,ProjMan, Dip. Law began her three year term as a Commissioner on December 19, 2012. She is an independent Management Consultant, with over 10 years’ managerial experience in general and contract administration, human resource management and corporate communications.

She is a former Director and Manager of Human Resources and Administration at Atlantic Project Consultants Limited. She also served as the Assistant Editor for Caribbean Construction Digest, a magazine which focuses on the Caribbean’s construction industry. Ms. Khemraj works with a diverse clientele (locally and regionally) from both the private and public sectors, and is skilled in matters relating to contract interpretation and project administration.

Dr. Shelton Nicholls

Dr. Shelton Nicholls was Deputy Governor, Research and Policy at the Central Bank of Trinidad and Tobago. He holds B.Sc. and M.Sc. degrees in Economics from The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus and was the recipient of a Commonwealth Academic Scholarship in 1991 to Queen Mary College, University of London, where he obtained his Ph.D.

Prior to joining the Central Bank, he served as Lecturer in the Economics Department at The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus and Executive Director of the Caribbean Centre for Monetary Studies.

Dr. Nicholls has written widely in regional and international academic and policy journals on trade, economic integration, econometric modeling and financial services. He has also served as a member of the White Paper Committee on Financial Sector Reform in Trinidad and Tobago and the Vision 2020 Sub-Committee on “The Macro-economy and Finance”. Dr. Nicholls was first appointed to the Board of Commissioners of the Trinidad and Tobago Securities and Exchange Commission on July 22, 2004 and was the longest serving Commissioner having served for three terms up until November 30, 2013.

Ms. Faydia Mohammed

Ms. Faydia Mohammed is a practising attorney-at-law who obtained her Bachelor of Law Degree (LLB) and Post Graduate Diploma in the Legal Practise Course (LPC) in the United Kingdom. Her legal career included six years in the public sector where she worked at the Ministry of the Attorney General and subsequently at the Tourism Development Company Limited. She first practised as an attorney predominately in civil litigation matters at the Chief State Solicitor’s Office, Ministry of the Attorney General. Before that assignment, Ms. Mohammed served as the paralegal to the Attorney General and the Central Authority Unit which dealt with extradition and mutual legal assistance matters.

Ms. Mohammed tendered her resignation as a Commissioner in accordance with Section 11 (1) (a) of the Securities Act due to her appointment as a Legal Officer at a registrant of the Commission.

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Deborah Thomas-Felix – Chairman

Deborah Thomas-Felix was the Commission’s third Chairman and the first female to be appointed to that position. A career judicial officer, Ms. Thomas-Felix has held several positions as Magistrate, Senior Magistrate, Deputy Chief Magistrate and former Judge of the Industrial Court of Trinidad of Tobago as well as former President of the Family Court of St Vincent and the Grenadines during the period 1990 to 2009.

An attorney-at- law by profession, Ms. Thomas-Felix is the holder of a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degree from the University of the West Indies, Barbados and a Certificate of Legal Education (LEC) from the Hugh Wooding Law School, Trinidad. She also attended American University’s Washington College of Law in Washington DC, USA where she obtained a Masters of Law degree (LLM) in International Legal Studies.

A Fulbright/ Hubert H Humphrey Fellow, Ms. Thomas-Felix underwent her one year fellowship at American University’s Washington College of Law and specialised in the area of Environment Law and Health and Safety. She is also a Fellow of the prestigious Georgetown University’s Edmond A. Walsh School of Foreign Service Leadership Seminar and a Fellow of the International Commonwealth Judicial Education Institute. She is a resource person for the Fulbright Board and provides lectures for Fulbright and Humphrey Fellows annually in the USA.

Since her resignation from the Bench in 2009 she opened the Law and Consulting firm of Deborah Thomas-Felix & Associates specializing in Civil, Family and Criminal Law, Industrial Relations matters, International Arbitration and Environmental Advocacy.

Ms. Thomas-Felix was appointed President of the Industrial Court with effect from December 2011 and re-appointed in December 2014. Ms. Thomas-Felix was also appointed as a judge on the United Nations Appeal Tribunal in December 2014.

Ms. Uchenna Ogbue

Ms. Uchenna Ogbue is an attorney-at-law who has been called to the Bar in Trinidad and Tobago, the United Kingdom and the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

She has a wide range of international experience in the finance, insurance and energy sectors and has had responsibility for providing legal advice on credit-related and general banking/regulatory issues as well as ensuring compliance with relevant regulatory requirements in two major local commercial banks. She is currently employed as Consultant Counsel in an energy sector company in Trinidad and Tobago.

Ms. Ogbue was appointed as a Commissioner on January 31, 2011 but resigned with effect from January 31, 2012 owing to time and other constraints, presented by her employment.

Mr. Francis Lewis – Commissioner and Chairman Pro Tem

Mr. Francis Lewis was appointed as a Commissioner at the Trinidad and Tobago Securities and Exchange Commission for a term which spanned April 10, 2007 to April 10, 2010. On February 1, 2009 he assumed the position of Chairman Pro Tem in the wake of Chairman Osborne Nurse’s departure on special assignment with the Central Bank of Trinidad and Tobago. He retained that position until November 30 when a new Chairman was appointed.

He is the Principal Consultant, at Res Consulting Limited: a management consultancy he started in 1993. He is a Lecturer and Subject Group Head for Marketing at The University of the West Indies’ Arthur Lok Jack Graduate School of Business (formerly the UWI-Institute of Business), teaching in the Doctoral and Masters programmes.

Osborne Nurse – Chairman & Chief Executive Officer

Mr. Osborne Nurse was first appointed Chairman of the Trinidad and Tobago Securities and Exchange Commission on April 29, 2003 for a period of three years. On May 19th 2006, Mr. Nurse was reappointed as Chairman for an additional three year period.

Mr. Nurse is a Management Consultant with a distinguished career in the financial sector. He was the first Chairman of the Association of Caribbean Securities Regulators, a body that was established in 2004, geared toward promoting and facilitating the sharing of information among Caribbean regulators as well as promoting and providing for the coordination of regulatory policies and cooperation among its members.

Mr. Nurse was the General Manager of First Citizens Bank, the Managing Director of Workers Bank (1989) Limited, and the first General Manager of the Deposit Insurance Corporation. He has also specialised in the organization and financial restructuring of several distressed institutions including Workers Bank (1989) Limited and a number of development financial institutions throughout the Region.

Mr. Vishnu Dhanpaul

Vishnu Dhanpaul is a Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance and the Economy. He is a former member of staff of the Executive Director’s Office of the International Monetary Fund in Washington DC and has also served as the President of TIDCO and the Tourism Development Company (TDC). He is the former Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Chaguaramas Development Authority, a former member of the Board of Management of the Trinidad and Tobago Revenue Authority and a former Chairman of the Agricultural Development Bank.

Mr. Dhanpaul was appointed as a Commissioner on the Board of the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 19, 2006 and served two terms in office.