Bluestart Capital Jamaica Limited, which trades as Courts Ready Cash, was recently approved by the Bank of Jamaica (BOJ) to operate as a licensed microfinance institution (MFI) locally.

Bluestart Capital is a member of the Unicomer Jamaica Group which comprises a number of other companies including furniture and appliance store Courts, Courts Optical, Ashley Homestore, Lucky Dollar, and Radio Shack.

The microfinance subsidiary, which has been in operation since 2012, offers personal and business loans to individuals and micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) – catering to a large cross section of the unbanked population as it plugs the gap for financing.

“Courts Ready Cash is delighted to have received our approval from the Bank of Jamaica (BOJ) to operate under the new regulations that govern the microfinance sector. We welcome and appreciate the change and have structured our company to ensure that its governance complies with best practices,” stated Atasha Bernard, general manager of Bluestart Capital.

Pursuant to the passing of the Microcredit Act in 2021, MFIs by law must now be licensed and approved by the BOJ which was named as regulator for the sector. This as government moves to stamp out predatory practices, protect borrowers and bring increased transparency to the sector. Prior to the Act, it was estimated that some 200 or more micro lenders were operating in Jamaica.

Courts Ready Cash joins a growing list of MFIs now licensed to legitimately transact business in the sector. The entity falls among the latest to be approved by the BOJ, which after the cut-off point last year, said it had received over 100 applications. Among other microcredit companies that have already secured approval from the BOJ are Access Financial, Kris An Charles Investments, Nykhana Invesment and Dolla Financial.

“We look forward in continuing to strengthen our footprint in Jamaica while providing competitive products and services that are tailored to suit the needs of customers. Courts Ready Cash will continue to spearhead initiatives that assist customers to improve their financial realities while providing value to all stakeholders,” Bernard added.

Brand manager for Courts Ready Cash Suzanne Campbell-Robinson, also commenting on the entity’s approval, said the status will further help the company to expand its loan portfolio and to offer new products and services while increasing its customer base. Currently serving customers across some 47 locations islandwide, the microcredit company lends up to $1.5 million to borrowers to suit a wide range of personal and business needs, with options to repay between 3-36 months.

“We want to benefit from growth right across our operation especially within our business portfolio. With the increasing number of persons moving to start businesses, there are vast opportunities in this area which we want to exploit even as we continue to spearhead all our various initiatives to offer financial solutions to our customers.

“Going forward we intend to dominate the market to become the main microfinance institution through which persons will want to access their loans and the recent approval by the BOJ puts us in a much better position to leverage our growth objectives,” she said to the Jamaica Observer.

Campbell-Robinson said that the microfinancier’s portfolio, which has overtime grown to offer additional services outside of its initial personal loans option, has also over the years benefited from robust demand, causing it to now be ranked among top entities in terms of its services and disbursements according to the findings of a recent market research.

The microlender contributes a significant portion of group earnings.

Campbell-Robinson said following its approved status, the entity is now more focused on its prospects.

“We have a number of new initiatives in our back pocket, several of which we are getting ready to roll out at the appropriate time. In the meantime, we, however, continue to offer competitive interest rates while adding value as we give back to our healthy data bank of customers that continue to support the brand,” she told the Business Observer.