IN a renewed push to boost adoption of central bank digital currency Jam-Dex, the Bank of Jamaica (BOJ) has turned to at least one food merchant for help to drive awareness and usage.

Despite being rolled out on a phased basis since 2021, Jam-Dex continues to see slow uptake, representing less than one per cent of the over $270 billion of total currency in circulation as of last year. At present, Jam-Dex is only available through the National Commercial Bank via its Lynk digital wallet.

Touted as a safer and more secure alternative to physical cash, Jam-Dex has yet to gain widespread traction. To help change this, the BOJ has teamed up with popular local eatery Chicken and Tings for a new promotional campaign aimed at incentivising digital payments.

As part of the campaign launched last week, Chicken and Tings is offering customers a free additional meal when they pay using Jam-Dex on Wednesdays. The promotion, branded under the slogan “Get it wid Jam-Dex! Good food, double the flavor,” applies to the first 50 customers who use Jam-Dex to pay up to $2,000 (including GCT). The free meal must be of equal or lesser value.

Chicken and Tings CEO Emelio Madden, speaking to the Jamaica Observer this week, said his company is proud to be a front-runner in the merchant campaign to grow Jam-Dex usage.

“Digital currency is the way forward so as much as we can help to push it, we will try to do so.

Since the start of the promotion last week we have so far seen steady traction, and we expect things to pick up a little more as we go through the next couple of weeks,” he further told the Business Observer.

Noting steady interest since the first week of the promotion which saw around 50 sign-ups that translated into actual purchases, Madden said he believes increased marketing and sensitisation will, in the coming weeks, inspire more people to participate. With the process requiring sign-up and app download, however, he indicated that this may be a turn-off for some people, especially those customers who are less tech-savvy.

“People always prefer quick and easy processes but the incentive of a free lunch might just be enough to convince them to give Jam-Dex a try,” he added.

Following a successful partnership earlier this year at Sumfest, marketing manager at Chicken and Tings Jemone Leith said BOJ’s decision to collaborate with the restaurant also stemmed from the strength of the restaurant’s payment system, which he said has strong operability features that are conducive to the processing of Jam-Dex.

With the campaign expected to run for three months, with the possibility of an extension based on results, Leith believes that customers being able to overcome the initial hurdles of signing-up and using the app will be key to long-term success.

“Once people get past signing up and actually begin to use Jam-Dex, I think we’ll start to see stronger results. Since the first week of promotion, people have been coming in, asking questions, and taking flyers home [to] get signed up so as to take advantage of the free offer on their next purchase,” he said.

He further underscored the safety and cost-saving benefits of the digital currency, noting that it could, over time, become as common as cash or debit/credit card payments. “Personally, I prefer Jam-Dex; it feels more secure. And once the BOJ finalises its platform, we plan to integrate it into our own payment systems and website.”

For now, the promotion is available at three Chicken and Tings locations — Cross Roads, Duhaney Park, and on Shortwood Road.

BOJ has been ramping up its own marketing efforts in recent months, launching several campaigns aimed at improving public understanding and increasing uptake. Tax Administration Jamaica (TAJ) just recently began accepting Jam-Dex for select government payments, including property tax, fitness fees, and traffic tickets.

Efforts to obtain more details from BOJ about the scope and expected impact of the latest marketing push proved futile, however, as up to press time responses to questions sent were not immediately available.

In a recent update, BOJ Deputy Governor for Financial Markets and Payment Systems Natalie Haynes indicated a 30 per cent increase in the volume of Jam-Dex transactions since the start of 2025.

“We have seen, since the start of this year, more interest in Jam-Dex by the individual users who do what we call peer-to-peer transactions,” she noted.