WILLEMSTAD – A delegation from De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB) met on Wednesday, 3 December 2025, with the Governor of Curaçao, His Excellency Mauritsz de Kort, to discuss the bank’s formal apology for its historical involvement in slavery and the initiatives that will follow.
The delegation consisted of Cees Ullersma and Maya Maric, who are leading DNB’s efforts to address and reconcile the institution’s slavery past. Earlier this year, DNB issued an official apology to all descendants of enslaved people in the Netherlands, Suriname, Curaçao, Sint Maarten, Sint Eustatius, Saba, Bonaire and Aruba.
Maric heads DNB’s project focused on researching and acknowledging the bank’s ties to slavery and developing programs that contribute to societal and historical understanding. Ullersma, as Head of International Cooperation, is also closely involved in DNB’s technical partnerships with sister institutions, including the Centrale Bank van Curaçao en Sint Maarten.
The meeting with Governor De Kort centered on the next steps following the apology, opportunities for collaboration, and ways to ensure that the initiatives benefit communities in Curaçao and across the wider Caribbean part of the Kingdom.
Photo: Cees Ullersma, Governor of Curaçao H.E. Mauritsz de Kort and Maya Maric.