Kintyre Holdings (JA) Limited, formerly iCreate Limited, has announced plans to transition its GetPaid subsidiary from a stand-alone company into a division within the larger holding group.

The decision comes as part of a broader strategic move aimed at streamlining operations while reducing administrative overheads, according to chairman, president, and CEO Tyrone Wilson.

Speaking with the Jamaica Observer this week, he further said the move is designed to enhance the group’s structural efficiency as it tightens operational controls.

“As an investment holding company, efficiency is critical. Operating a subsidiary the size of GetPaid as a standalone limited entity — especially at this stage — incurs significant costs related to audits, board meetings, legal teams, and maintaining a full corporate structure. When we looked at it, the costs outweighed the benefits. So, for now, GetPaid will operate as a division,” Wilson told the Business Observer.

“This move was always in the making as we’ve always reiterated the need to develop new services in order to fully deliver on our core function,” he continued.

GetPaid, an e-commerce platform acquired by Kintyre (then iCreate) in 2022, was initially established to serve businesses looking to sell products and services online, acting as a cross-border payment gateway. Over time, the company expanded into other offerings such as SMS communications and website development. However, many of these services will now be discontinued as management shifts focus back to higher-margin, core activities.

As the group repositions the division for growth, Wilson noted that a return to a standalone status for GetPaid remains a future possibility, contingent on its performance. Management, he further said, has established a baseline target requiring all businesses within the group to generate at least $100 million in revenue to operate as standalone entities.

“Going forward, GetPaid will focus exclusively on its core e-commerce technology products, which are expected to drive growth and unlock future value for shareholders,” Wilson told shareholders in a Jamaica Stock Exchange notice outlining the changes.

He also shared plans for research and development to expand GetPaid’s offerings.

“We’re working on new products, including a rental payment solution for the business-to-consumer (B2C) market and a platform aimed at serving gig economy workers like waiters and hotel staff,” he explained during a telephone interview on Monday while noting an expected roll-out of these services in the next two to three months.

Following the resignation of GetPaid’s former president and CEO Leighton Campbell, and a recent staff reduction, Wilson estimates that the division will now contribute approximately half of its previous 10 per cent share of group revenues. However, he remains optimistic about Visual Vibe and Parallel Renovations, subsidiaries which he believes will continue to drive the bulk of the group’s income.

“These companies deliver multiples of what GetPaid currently does and so we will be putting a lot of energy behind them even as we try to leverage the tech capabilities that GetPaid has within Visual Vibe.”

Kintyre, which rebranded last year, posted its first net profit of $80.6 million, a turnaround from the $154-million loss recorded in 2023. This performance was supported by a 35 per cent increase in revenues, reaching $217.1 million by year-end.

“Looking at Kintyre now, we are growing extremely fast since we made the internal changes to become an investment holding company. We’ve done a lot of work with Visual Vibe to increase its earning potential, and Parallel Renovations as a real estate entity has also started out well. We will continue to focus on developing these companies as we get the R&D going in order to come back properly with GetPaid — similar to our current efforts with the iCreate Institute which also falls under the group,” Wilson said.

GetPaid, an e-commerce platform acquired by Kintyre (then iCreate) in 2022, was initially established to serve businesses looking to sell products and services online, acting as a cross-border payment gateway.