ST JAMES, Jamaica – Vice President of Corporate and Commercial Banking at National Commercial Bank Jamaica Limited (NCB), Raymond Donaldson says the resort city of Montego Bay is now becoming another hub for economic activity with a wide scale diversification of industries in Jamaica.

Donaldson was speaking at a corporate mingle event hosted by NCB at the Half Moon Resort in Rose Hall, St James, for its Corporate and Commercial Banking customers, recently.

“Montego Bay’s economy has diversified beyond tourism to include emerging sectors such as construction, manufacturing, distribution, and agriculture,” Donaldson said.

“We see great potential for these businesses to expand regionally, and NCB is eager to support them in these ventures with tailored financing solutions and dedicated service. There is a demand for Jamaican products and services worldwide, and there presents a tremendous opportunity for our local businesses to tap into those markets and expand beyond our borders,” he continued.

Introducing a team of newly installed relationship managers for its western region clientele, Donaldson noted, “usually, our customers in western Jamaica are served by our Corporate and Commercial Banking officers in Kingston. But we see the nature of businesses changing in St James, and we want to ensure that our clients have a team on-the-ground to support them even better.”

CEO of NCB, Septimus ‘Bob’ Blake, also brought remarks at the event, noting that he was happy for the opportunity to connect with their business customers in western Jamaica face-to-face, a first since the COVID-19 pandemic.

“While we may not have been here physically like today for a while, we have been unwavering in our support for the local business community, right through the pandemic and beyond. In fact, more than 70 per cent of all business loans disbursed in 2021 during the height of the pandemic went to businesses across all sectors, and principal moratoria was implemented for many clients at a time when revenues were at their lowest,” Blake said, adding that “but we understood that business had to keep running, and ensured that we were right there to lend a hand in any way we could.”

CEO and founder of Bioprist, Dr Guna Muppuri, was also delighted at the opportunity to reconnect.

“NCB is my bank, and I am very pleased. I’m also very happy that NCB has held this event, it is the largest and best event I’ve been to since COVID, and I was very happy to be able to reconnect with my bankers and other members of the Montego Bay business community,” Muppuri said.

The event saw key industry players from manufacturing, distribution, business process outsourcing (BPO), tourism, and construction in attendance.