FOR every $1,000 in currency issued by Bank of Jamaica (BOJ) at the end of June, less than $1 was in JAM-DEX, underscoring the digital dollar’s limited reach as outgoing Governor Richard Byles accepts that the central bank mishandled parts of its roll-out.

Byles, whose tenure ends on August 18, said BOJ waited about two years before involving commercial banks and should have enlisted the Government from the outset to make digital payments a national priority.

“Let me take some of the blame,” Byles told the Jamaica Observer during an exit interview.

“If I was to do it again, I would ask the Government of Jamaica to work with the Bank of Jamaica to express to the DTIs (deposit-taking institutions) that the business of digital payments is a matter of national interest,” he said.

“It is not just the Bank of Jamaica. It is a national imperative that Jamaica digitises, and the payment system is an important aspect of that.”

JAM-DEX is an electronic version of the Jamaican dollar issued by BOJ and accessed through approved digital wallets. Unlike cryptocurrency, its value does not fluctuate independently. One JAM-DEX dollar is equal to one Jamaican dollar.

At the end of June, BOJ reported $311.34 billion in total currency issue, comprising $303.39 billion in banknotes, $7.66 billion in coins and $290.65 million in JAM-DEX.

The digital currency therefore represented approximately 0.09 per cent of the total — about $1 in JAM-DEX for every $1,070 in currency issued.

The comparison does not measure how often JAM-DEX is spent. The $290.65 million represents the amount issued rather than the total value of transactions, but it illustrates how small JAM-DEX remains compared with physical cash.

BOJ reported 305,026 registered JAM-DEX users at the end of 2025, an increase of 8.1 per cent over the previous year. Registration, however, does not necessarily mean that a wallet is being used regularly.

Of the $260.1 million in JAM-DEX classified as being in circulation at the end of 2025, $144.4 million, or 55.5 per cent, was held by the public. Wallet providers held the remaining $115.7 million in their digital vaults.

BOJ’s published annual figures do not show how many registered wallets are active, how frequently they are used or how much is spent by repeat users. The central bank nevertheless reported increased use during 2025, with acceptance expanding to more restaurants, entertainment businesses and bookstores.

BOJ waited too long

Byles said the central bank spent about two years preparing JAM-DEX before bringing commercial banks into the project.

“We spent about two years in preparing before we went to the banks. I would have brought the banks in from that time so that they could see exactly what we were preparing to do,” he said.

Byles has repeatedly expressed frustration with the time banks have taken to introduce JAM-DEX services. Banks, however, have said implementation requires costly changes to their core computer systems at a time when customer demand remains relatively low.

Byles now acknowledges that BOJ’s approach contributed to the delay. Without a clear national directive, he said, JAM-DEX was forced to compete with other technology projects within financial institutions.

“JAM-DEX was put at number five on the list of that institution and number eight on the list of that institution, because they have other technological imperatives, and I understand that,” he said.

“But had it started in a more important fashion, it would have jumped the queue to being number one or two in all of the DTIs, and I think we would have gone a little farther than we have now.”

Byles said BOJ never expected JAM-DEX to replace cash quickly. The central bank envisaged about five per cent more cash transactions becoming digital each year, which he said meant the transition could take between 10 and 15 years.

Spending remains the obstacle

For Byles, the immediate problem is not the design of JAM-DEX but the limited number of businesses where people can spend it.

“JAM-DEX works,” he said. “JAM-DEX exists and people are doing transactions with the money. I don’t think we need to redesign the model.”

JAM-DEX payments can be made using QR codes, but the point-of-sale machines used by shops, supermarkets and restaurants must be configured to accept them.

“What’s the point of you getting money in JAM-DEX if you can’t go and spend it in restaurants or supermarkets because the POS machines don’t take it?” Byles asked.

Jamaica had 34,151 point-of-sale terminals at the end of 2025, up 7.3 per cent from a year earlier.

Byles estimated that approximately 18,000 machines would need to be adapted to accept JAM-DEX, although it was not immediately clear what portion of the wider network that figure covered.

He reiterated that BOJ was prepared to pay half the cost of upgrading the required machines, describing the contribution as an investment in the national payment system. He said JAM-DEX could be promoted more heavily once it is accepted at significantly more businesses.

The cost of cash

Byles rejected the argument that banks necessarily have an incentive to resist JAM-DEX because it competes with their card-payment services. He argued that reducing Jamaica’s dependence on cash could save banks, businesses and the country money.

Banks must operate and replenish automated teller machines, transport currency and pay for security. Businesses face similar costs to collect, protect and deposit cash, while BOJ spends foreign currency to have Jamaican banknotes and coins manufactured overseas.

“It is a cost to the banks and a cost to business to be managing all of that cash. It is a very expensive thing. And to the country,” Byles said.

“If you knew the kind of US dollars we have to pay to get currency printed, to get coins made to circulate, that is money that we could save by having a digital payment system.”

He said the expenses run into millions of dollars annually but did not provide a precise figure. He also argued that problems with ATMs damage the reputation of banks while adding to their operating costs.

The disruption caused by Hurricane Melissa exposed weaknesses across Jamaica’s payment system. Damage and interruptions to roads, electricity and telecommunications affected access to bank branches, ATMs and electronic payments.

Greater JAM-DEX use could make it easier for people to send money directly to each other and for the Government to make emergency payments, although those services would still require functioning telecommunications networks.

JAM-DEX must also compete with payment methods that Jamaicans already use extensively. During 2025, customers conducted 76.1 million debit-card transactions valued at approximately $1 trillion and 35.1 million credit-card transactions valued at $1.5 trillion.

The challenge is therefore not simply to persuade Jamaicans to use less cash, but to convince them to adopt another form of digital payment alongside cards and bank transfers.

Byles maintains that JAM-DEX is a sound product but concedes that BOJ should have taken a different approach to securing the support of the Government and commercial banks.

Asked what major project remained unfinished as he prepared to leave BOJ, he expressed regret over JAM-DEX’s limited progress.

“I haven’t completed JAM-DEX. For that, I am really sorry, because I think it’s a good product. I think Jamaica needs it,” Byles said.

“It actually exists out there but in small doses, but I think with the power of Government and the cooperation ultimately of the commercial banks, we will get that done.”