BOJ acquires St Andrew property to supplement downtown headquarters

The Bank of Jamaica (BOJ) says it is implementing strategic measures to enhance its operational resilience, including the relocation of some functions to a recently acquired property in St Andrew.

Notably, this facility will handle specific operational activities but will not offer services to the public.

BOJ Governor Richard Byles explained the reasoning behind establishing this additional operational centre, supplementing its downtown Kingston headquarters.

Central banking functions are critical to the business sector and government activities across Jamaica, as well as to the facilitation of international transactions, Byles noted.

He emphasised the importance of protecting these functions from disruptions, underscoring their role in maintaining economic stability and supporting national and global business activities.

Byles highlighted the BOJ's waterfront location as particularly vulnerable to natural hazards, such as earthquakes and potential sea level rise, as well as storm surges from tropical cyclones.

"As part of our risk management strategy, the BOJ prepares for various contingencies and aims to minimise the risk of a full shutdown in the event of a disaster,” he explained.

He added that enhancing the resilience of the operations of the central bank will be of significant benefit to the entire country and is a major focus of the bank’s board and management.

“Building operational resilience and mitigating risks of various forms is especially critical as Bank of Jamaica prepares to assume wider prudential responsibilities for the regulation and supervision of the entire financial sector. With this in mind, planning for expansion at our current site while also ensuring adequate mitigation of risks to critical operational functions are not mutually exclusive.” Byles pointed out.