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JN Bank is moving ahead with the roll-out of JN Pay Wallet, its mobile wallet for the Bank of Jamaica’s central bank digital currency (CBDC), JAM-DEX.

The bank credits its decision for rolling out the mobile wallet to the increase in the number of Jamaicans using digital platforms and digitals solutions to conduct their daily transactions.

JN Pay Wallet enables users to receive, send, and pay with JAM-DEX. Users can also deposit to and withdraw from their JN Bank accounts, as well as cash from the wallet at JN Bank Smart ATMs.

According to JN Bank Chief of Branches and Digital Channels Ricardo Dystant, the widespread introduction of the mobile wallet will advance the bank’s efforts to advance financial inclusion, while reducing barriers to access to financial services.

“It’s really true to our mandate about ‘People First’ and driving financial inclusion. People can also use the wallet to pay their JPS (Jamaica Public Service) and NWC (National Water Commission) bills – essentially everything on our JN Bank Live platform, except wire transfers,” he explained.

Moreover, he stated that the onboarding process is easy as users only need a tax registration number, telephone number, and to sign up. While a bank account is not needed to sign up, JN Pay Wallet users can link their bank accounts to the solution.

The company has been developing the mobile wallet since 2022, with its sister company, MC Systems, leading the design process. On December 30, 2022, JN Bank received its first issue of the digital currency, amounting to $1 million, on December for a pilot project.

So, what has happened between then and now?

“What we had to do is make sure that whatever product or application we’re bringing to the market is safe, secure, but more importantly, very convenient to use. So, through the pilot we’d have several lessons learnt,” Dystant told Our Today in an interview.

He added that there was a period of gathering data and using that data to identify complexities that would deter potential users from signing up for JN Pay Wallet. Even as the bank is yet to officially launch the mobile wallet, it is still using information from transactions to fine-tune the digital product.

Expanding the JAM-DEX ecosystem

The Bank of Jamaica, in its 2024 annual report, stated that although the roll-out of the CBDC is “not at the desired speed”, it has made progress on “activities to allow JAM-DEX® to be accepted at point-of-sale (POS) machines, but the number of entities onboarded as external wallet providers was unchanged at three at the end of the review year”.

National Commercial Bank, though its subsidiary TFOB (2021), was the first mover into the CBDC space with the launch of LYNK in 2021 – at the height of COVID-19 pandemic when limiting physical interaction was discouraged. Sagicor Bank in 2023 announced its partnership with the University of Technology, Jamaica, to develop and pilot test SwifPay for JAM-DEX.

Despite the lesser-than-expected take-up of JAM-DEX, JN Bank believes its participation in the BOJ’s CBDC experiment will contribute to expanding the ecosystem and increasing adoption among Jamaicans.

“As you’d appreciate, there can be no success in any payment ecosystem unless you have sufficient players and you have sufficient cash-in and cash-out options,” Dystant told Our Today.

One of the features of the JN Pay Wallet is its third-party cash out. This allows users to send a transfer number via SMS text to a recipient who collects cash at any JN Smart ATM without a bank account or credit card.

Another feature of the JN Pay Wallet is interoperability, allowing users to send from JN Pay Wallet to LYNK and other potential wallets coming to the public. This is possible by scanning another mobile wallet user’s QR Code and sending funds.

Dystant shared a situation in which he needed to make payment at a vendor on the Mona campus of The University of the West Indies, but had no cash. With no time to go to an ATM, he asked the vendor if he had a mobile wallet for CBDC, then made payment using the vendor’s LYNK QR code.

“Interoperability for us is what I believe will make this roll-out a success. You’ll be able to go to merchants who have points of sale, irrespective of which mobile wallet they use, because you’ll be able to move money instantly,” he further informed Our Today.

The “instant gratification” of receiving around-the-clock transfers is another benefit for Dystant. He contrasted it with the slow pace of sending an automated clearing house transfer or real-time gross settlement through a bank.

The JN chief of branches also pointed out that a sustainable CBDC ecosystem will need entrance and exit points in the form of mobile wallet providers and merchants. As such, he disclosed that JN will be onboarding and enabling merchant clients with point-of-sale devices to accept JAM-DEX.

He furthermore said that the bank will also be looking to integrate JN Money Transfer capabilities.

Initiatives with Bank of Jamaica

As part of the roll-out leading up to the grand launch, JN Bank has been collaborating with the BOJ on a set of initiatives.

“We did one earlier this year by the tax office (Tax Administration Jamaica – TAJ)…where persons were able to pay their taxes on the Inland Revenue portal,” Dystant said, going on to relate to Our Today his own experience paying on the TAJ platform, which he described as successful and convenient.

Additionally, JN Bank partnered with the central bank to promote the use of JAM-DEX at Reggae Sumfest.

“These strategic partnerships underscore the versatility and value of JN Wallet to advance the adoption of digital financial solutions across diverse industries here in Jamaica,” Jair Minott, manager for digital transformation and special projects at JN Bank.

Currently available for download in the Apple Store and Google Play Store, JN Pay Wallet has three different tiers in which customers can enrol. Tier Zero allows daily transaction limits of up to $50,000 and only requires a customer’s TRN for sign-up. For a greater transaction limit, JN Bank ask customers to upload a national-issued identification card.

“Once you download the Wallet, you go through the process of registering, and you complete general onboarding using your email, phone number and your TRN. To upgrade to Tier 1, you will need to upload an ID, and that could be your national ID, driver’s licence or passport. There

is a verification process, which takes a maximum of 24 hours, and then you get access to a

higher balance and transaction limit each day. Currently, that upgraded limit is $100,000,” Minott detailed.

He said the wallet can also serve as a tool for individuals to manage their finances.