WHILE the architecture of the financial system is back online, vandalism, lack of power, and stranded communities continue to hamper the recovery process.

Edmundo Jenez, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of JETS Limited, gave a comprehensive update to the Jamaica Observer on Thursday regarding the Multilink and ACH (Automated Clearing House) networks.

“The system was shut down prior to the hurricane hitting [Jamaica] for safety reasons to prevent any potential damage because of lightning and whatever else might come with the impact,” Jenez stated in his update.

He also added, “By Wednesday morning we were back in and restarting the systems. So far, all systems are up and functioning, but because of the widespread power outages we have, not everywhere can access [the network].”

JETS is the operator of the Multilink network which allows member institutions to communicate with each other for domestic transactions via point-of-sale (POS) and ABM. This network allows customers of each bank to use another bank’s cash machines and point-of-sale terminals.

The Multilink network handles more than $1 trillion in transactions on an annual basis for its member institutions. However, the JETS CEO revealed that while they would normally process at least $2 billion in transactions on a Thursday, they processed $300 million at 1:00 pm and expected to end the day around $600 million to $700 million.

When asked about the discrepancy, Jenez explained that the lower value of transactions processed was due to the fact that a large section of the island remained without power, which impacts on the ability to transact and for commerce to take place.

“The situation is not hopeless, but recovery is slow. We’re taking some time to get all the bits and pieces back, but at least for the Kingston side, the primary switches for the ACH and Multilink are online,” Jenez noted.

When it comes on to the ABM network, Jenez highlighted that 391 ABMs were checking in to the network relative to the 900 installed ABMs across the island. However, this translates to 45 per cent of member machines being back online.

He indicated that he should get parish-by-parish statistics regarding ABMs by Friday. Jenez indicated that of 10 ABMs in Montego Bay, seven were already back online. However, this pales in comparison to the 110 installed ABMs in St James, as per the Bank of Jamaica’s August 2025 report.

He highlighted that each bank would determine when it would enable some ABMs again, but the acts of vandalism only complicates the recovery process. Someone damaged two ABM screens at one bank and there was an attempted theft of a machine during Hurricane Melissa.

“I don’t know what is going on in people’s heads at this time when we need all of our resources working,” Jenez expressed in frustration.

Of the more than 24,000 installed POS machines recorded by JETS last month, just 3,351 terminals were homing back in. That means just under 14 per cent of POS terminals are connected and enabled to process transactions.

The JETS CEO underscored that without power and telecommunications there will be a limit on how fast these systems can come back on stream to speed up commerce.

However, he noted that the system is online, and even with last Thursday’s technical disruption, the network player is eager to see the country recover and get back online.

JETS CEO Edmundo Jenez underscores that while financial architecture is back, power and telecom outages continue to hamper commerce.