Both the Government and financial institutions are calling for greater adoption of digital financial offering and services but there is a reluctance to put the infrastructure in place to make it so.

At today’s Bank of Jamaica’s Quarterly Press Briefing, Governor Richard Byles said that Jamaica should make greater efforts to turn to digital solutions like JamDex and become less reliant on cash.

The Head of the Central Bank said more must be done to put terminals in place so that transactions can be done this way, and that JamDex can be allowed to become a mainstay of doing business and carrying out transactions across Jamaica.

However, the Jamaica Bankers Association (JBA)  says the cost of doing so is prohibitive and that there is not enough of a substantive case for the adoption of JamDex at this time.

Read the JBA’s full statement below:

While the JBA welcomes the Bank of Jamaica’s initiatives to promote greater adoption of JamDex, deposit-taking institutions (DTIs) continue to face significant implementation costs associated with bringing this entirely new product to market.

Such costs include the substantial investment required to integrate JamDex with core banking systems and supporting technology infrastructure. Banks must carefully assess these expenditures against competing technology investments that deliver more immediate and demonstrable value to Jamaican consumers, such as improving cash availability at ABMs, enhancing the speed and reliability of RTGS and ACH transaction processing, and strengthening online and mobile banking platforms that support everyday financial activity.

 When compared with these widely used channels, the business case to prioritise JamDex remains challenging. This is reflected in the experience of two JBA member institutions, each with a large client base, that have already rolled out JamDex but have seen very limited customer uptake, consistent with international experience with similar Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) initiatives.

While early engagement here in Jamaica was encouraging, broader adoption remains limited. As with any payment innovation, sustained growth depends on strong consumer awareness, widespread merchant acceptance and meaningful usage incentives.  In this context, DTIs’ finite technology resources have necessarily been prioritised toward other critical initiatives, including the recently mandated industry-wide migration to the ISO 20022 messaging standard. 

The Bank of Jamaica’s willingness to share in the POS implementation cost for JamDex is a constructive step. At the same time, lasting success will be strengthened by coordinated engagement across Government, merchants and consumers to embed digital currency in everyday economic activity. International experience suggests that usage typically accelerates when digital currency becomes integrated into public sector transactions and other high-frequency payment flows. Collaborative policy alignment and ongoing public education in this regard would materially support adoption and long-term sustainability.

Notwithstanding the challenges, member banks continue to work through the JamDex project, and the JBA looks forward to continued collaborative dialogue with the BOJ to identify practical, sustainable solutions that can expand access to payment systems as we work jointly toward achieving this shared objective.