Bank of Jamaica Governor Richard Byles told Parliament's Standing Finance Committee, in his final report during his tenure, that the central bank had delivered price and financial system stability through a period marked by global and domestic shocks. He highlighted inflation performance, financial sector resilience and institutional reform as the main outcomes, noting that the Bank has operated as an independent central bank since 2021. On price stability, Jamaica's average annual inflation was 6 per cent between September 2019 and April 2026, and 5 per cent excluding April 2021 to March 2023, within the Bank's 4 per cent to 6 per cent target range. On financial stability, Byles said Jamaica recorded no bank failures over the seven-year period. He also pointed to a 2.9 per cent average annual depreciation of the Jamaican dollar, broadly in line with the inflation differential with the United States, and an increase in gross international reserves from USD3.6 billion in 2019 to USD6.4 billion as at May 2026. Additional markers cited were Jamaica's removal from the Financial Action Task Force grey list in 2024 and more than J$50 billion in dividends paid by the Bank to the Ministry of Finance over the past seven years. Byles also outlined modernization measures including polymer banknotes, further rollout of JAM-DEX with phone-to-phone transactions, and development of an electronic Know Your Customer system to make switching accounts between financial institutions easier. He said the proposed Twin Peaks supervisory architecture will soon be ready for Cabinet consideration and would introduce sector-wide customer protection and market conduct standards. He also identified weak monetary transmission in Jamaica's concentrated banking system as an unresolved structural issue that continues to limit the pass-through of policy signals to credit and lending rates.
Bank of Jamaica2026-06-12
Bank of Jamaica highlights inflation control and pending Twin Peaks reform in governor's final parliamentary report
In his final report to Parliament's Standing Finance Committee, Bank of Jamaica Governor Richard Byles said the central bank had maintained inflation and financial stability while advancing institutional reform. He pointed to inflation averaging 6 per cent since September 2019, no bank failures, reserves rising to USD6.4 billion, and Jamaica's 2024 removal from the Financial Action Task Force grey list. He also said Twin Peaks supervisory reform will soon go to Cabinet, while weak monetary transmission remains a structural challenge.