Category: Regulations
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Jamaica’s Digital Identity Ambition Meets Data Protection Reality
A few years ago, I attended a meeting at the Office of the Prime Minister of Jamaica where representatives from financial institutions were invited to learn about the proposed National Identification System (NIDS). I was there representing a bank within a Jamaican financial group. The presentation outlined how the system would allow banks and other…
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Privacy vs Compliance: Why GDPR and AML Laws Seem to Clash in Banking
When I first heard about the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), I did not receive it warmly. From the perspective of someone working inside a financial institution, the idea that a customer could ask for personal data to be removed sounded unrealistic. Banks are not casual data collectors. They operate under strict legal and regulatory…
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Why Data Protection Is Reshaping Financial Systems
As digital identity systems and privacy laws expand, financial institutions are facing a new operational reality. Compliance is no longer just a legal exercise. It is becoming a technology problem. In Jamaica, financial institutions must operate within several regulatory frameworks at the same time. Anti-money-laundering rules under the Proceeds of Crime Act require banks and…
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Rethinking Financial Oversight: Jamaica’s Shift from Sectors to Twin Peaks
In January 2023, the Government of Jamaica announced that it is pursuing a “Twin Peaks” regulatory model for the financial sector. According to the Jamaica Information Service release dated January 26, 2023, the reform will modify the country’s traditional sector-by-sector supervisory framework, where different regulators oversee different types of financial institutions. Under the current system,…
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Jamaica Simplified Know-Your-Customer. So Why Does It Still Feel Hard?
In 2019, Jamaica introduced simplified customer due diligence (CDD) through amendments to its Proceeds of Crime Act, Anti-Money Laundering (POCA AML) regulations. Customer Due Diligence is the procedure that banks must use before opening bank accounts for their customers. The goal was clear: to reduce on-boarding barriers (when opening bank accounts) and expand access to…