payment systems Jamaica

A complete analysis of Jamaica’s nineteen-month BOJ Payment System Data Bulletin series, June 2024 to December 2025. JAMCLEAR-RTGS volumes reflected sustained interbank activity, POS transactions grew as card adoption accelerated, and cheque usage declined structurally — together tracing the arc of Jamaica’s payment modernisation programme.

A complete analysis of Jamaica’s seventeen-month BOJ ABM Performance Bulletin series, December 2024 to April 2026. Hurricane Melissa triggered seven consecutive months of uptime non-compliance, the permanent loss of eleven Scotia Bank machines, and a 137-machine fleet refresh programme — the largest in the series. Rural uptime finally recovered above 95% in April 2026.

A complete analysis of Jamaica’s seventeen-month Bank of Jamaica Remittance Bulletin series, from December 2024 through April 2026. Fiscal 2025/26 became the first year to exceed US$3 billion in diaspora inflows, with corridor trends, regional benchmarks and housing market implications examined across the full dataset.

Scotia Bank has launched a 137-machine ABM fleet refresh programme as Hurricane Melissa recovery enters its seventh month. System uptime remained at 93.6% in April 2026 — below the 95% minimum for a seventh consecutive month — though rural uptime crossed above the threshold for the first time since the storm.

Jamaica’s remittances fell 0.8% in April 2026 to US$274.5 million — the first monthly contraction of the year — but calendar year-to-date growth remains positive at 3.3%, with cumulative inflows reaching US$1.07 billion through April.

Jamaica’s ABM network achieved 95.4% operational in March 2026 — clearing the BOJ minimum for the sixth consecutive month — but system uptime remained at 92.9%, below the 95% standard, as Hurricane Melissa’s telecommunications impact continued six months after the storm and JN Bank recorded the month’s lowest uptime at 88.3%.

Jamaica’s diaspora remittances surpassed US$3 billion in fiscal 2025/26 for the first time, reaching US$3,284.4 million. March inflows rose 5.2% to US$297.7 million as the USA corridor hit 69.6%, its highest share in the series.

Jamaica’s ABM network hit a post-Melissa high of 96.2% operational in February 2026, but system uptime slipped to 92.1% — below BOJ’s 95% minimum for a fifth straight month — with JMMB’s rural machines recording an extraordinary 17.1-hour average recovery time, while Hanover and Trelawny confirmed full Hurricane Melissa recovery.

Jamaica received US$247.6 million in remittances in February 2026, growing 3.8% year-on-year, as the USA source share rebounded to 68.4% and the UK corridor moderated to 11.7% from its 12.5% Christmas peak. The fiscal year-to-date total reached US$2,986.6 million, approaching the US$3 billion milestone for the first time.

Jamaica’s ABM network improved to 94.1% operational in January 2026 as six institutions achieved 100% operational rates, but system uptime remained at 93.0% — below BOJ’s 95% minimum standard for the third consecutive month — with Hurricane Melissa’s telecommunications damage still affecting Scotia Bank’s fleet.

Jamaica received US$273.2 million in remittances in January 2026, a 5.0% year-on-year increase, as the USA source share fell to 67.5% — its lowest January reading in the BOJ series — and the UK corridor held at 12.2%, confirming that the elevated corridor levels of late 2025 are sustaining into the new year.

Jamaica’s payment system ended 2025 with a record 34,151 POS terminals and robust December electronic transaction volumes, while full-year data confirmed an accelerating shift away from cheques — annual volume fell 7.1% to 5.10 million as digital displacement reshapes how Jamaicans pay.

Jamaica’s ABM network recovered to 91.3% operational in December 2025 as Hurricane Melissa’s aftermath persisted, with 11 machines permanently destroyed in Scotia Bank’s fleet, Hanover parish at just 62.5% uptime, and Victoria Mutual staging a dramatic recovery from November’s 67.5% series low.

Jamaica remittances reached a record US$315.3 million in December 2025 — a 13.6% year-on-year surge — capping a full year of US$3,485.7 million in inflows (+3.8%), the strongest annual remittance total in the island’s history, as the UK corridor held firm at 12.5% and the agent network contracted to 442 locations.

Jamaica’s JAMCLEAR-RTGS processed 4.6 million transactions through November 2025 as JMD ABM cash withdrawal values surged 32.5% year-to-date to JMD 1.1 trillion. POS transaction declines moderated sharply to just 2.8%, cheque volumes fell 15.5%, and outstanding government bonds rose 7.2% to JMD 831 billion.