分类： business

Just 10 days out from the kickoff of the 2026 Atlantic Hurricane Season, Jamaica has bolstered its financial defenses against catastrophic storm damage by locking in a $200 million expanded hurricane coverage package from global capital markets. This move comes on the heels of 2025’s Hurricane Melissa, which left behind a trail of destruction equal to more than half of the Caribbean nation’s total annual economic output.

The new transaction replaces Jamaica’s previous three-year $150 million catastrophe bond, a shift that underscores the rising financial threat that severe tropical storms pose to the island’s economy and long-term recovery capacity. The World Bank announced the deal on Monday, noting that overwhelming investor demand allowed the government to increase the coverage size from its initial planned amount. The expansion comes as Jamaica prepares for another forecasted active Atlantic hurricane season, prioritizing protection against rare, high-impact storm events that can upend years of economic progress.

This latest issuance follows the activation of Jamaica’s prior catastrophe bond after Melissa made landfall in October 2025. The storm met all pre-negotiated trigger parameters tied to its intensity and track, triggering a full payout to the Jamaican government that delivered immediate access to emergency funds during the critical immediate recovery period. This real-world activation served as a full-scale test of Jamaica’s existing disaster financing strategy, proving the instrument’s ability to deliver rapid relief when disaster strikes.

Post-disaster assessments peg total damage, losses and associated recovery costs from Hurricane Melissa at roughly $12.2 billion, a sum that equals approximately 56.7% of Jamaica’s entire annual gross domestic product. That staggering figure lays bare the massive fiscal and economic vulnerability that climate-driven severe hurricanes create for small island developing states across the Caribbean. The storm damaged critical public infrastructure, coastal tourism assets, agricultural production and public utilities, leaving the government grappling with sustained budget pressure months into the ongoing reconstruction effort.

Jamaica’s expanded catastrophe bond also highlights a growing global trend: climate-fueled disasters are increasingly becoming a major sovereign balance sheet risk for climate-vulnerable economies. For small islands like Jamaica that face repeated storm impacts, the ability to transfer risk to global capital markets has become a core part of climate resilience planning.

“Having disaster risk financing in place is a key pillar of our resilience-building framework,” Jamaica’s Finance Minister Fayval Williams said in a statement released through the World Bank. “The catastrophe bond is an important piece ensuring capital market access for Jamaica.”

The new bond forms a core component of what the World Bank calls Jamaica’s “multi-layered disaster risk financing strategy,” a comprehensive approach that combines parametric catastrophe bond coverage with dedicated budget reserves, contingent government financing agreements and other risk transfer tools. The overarching goal of this framework is to reduce the severe fiscal shock that major hurricanes typically impose on national budgets.

The World Bank emphasized that Jamaica remains extremely exposed to the financial fallout of hurricane events, warning that severe storms carry lasting consequences for public safety, household livelihoods and broader macroeconomic stability across the island.

The new bond is issued through the World Bank’s existing “capital at risk” notes program, a mechanism that enables vulnerable nations to shift disaster-related risk off their public balance sheets and onto a broad base of international institutional investors. Under the standard catastrophe bond structure, investors earn regular fixed returns as long as no qualifying triggering disaster occurs. If a major storm meets the payout conditions, however, investors forfeit part or all of their principal, which is redirected to the affected government for emergency recovery.

This latest transaction will provide Jamaica with continuous hurricane coverage through to 2030, and carries an annual risk margin of 6.75%.

World Bank Vice-President and Treasurer Jorge Familiar highlighted that the full payout after Hurricane Melissa confirms how well-designed parametric disaster financing instruments can deliver fast, predictable protection when disaster strikes. “The payout following Hurricane Melissa demonstrated once again how countries can prepare for disaster with well-designed parametric instruments that deliver fast and reliable financial protection when it is needed most,” Familiar said.

The new catastrophe bond will be listed on the Singapore Exchange, with structuring led by global financial firms Aon Securities and Swiss Re Capital Markets.

MONTEGO BAY, St James — Just months after investing $85 million to reconstruct and upgrade its communications network across Jamaica in the wake of Hurricane Melissa, telecom provider Flow Jamaica has deepened its long-term commitment to the country with the official launch of its dedicated business-to-business division, Liberty Business Jamaica. The launch event, held this week in Montego Bay, brought together dozens of local business leaders and government stakeholders, and included major announcements about the company’s upcoming technological expansion and local investment plans.

Stephen Price, vice-president and general manager of both Flow Jamaica and Liberty Business Jamaica, revealed to attendees that the company is in the final stages of preparations for a 5G network rollout, hinting that the official launch could come in just a matter of weeks. Addressing recent temporary mobile service disruptions that some Jamaican customers have experienced, Price explained the interruptions are a side effect of ongoing large-scale infrastructure upgrades. He urged customers who have received notifications to upgrade their SIM cards to complete the swap promptly to get ready for the faster, next-generation connectivity that is on the horizon.

The upcoming 5G launch aligns with Flow Jamaica’s previously announced goal of completing a full transition to a 100% fibre-optic network across the country by December 2025, a foundational infrastructure upgrade designed to support advanced new technologies including 5G.

Beyond the 5G announcement, Price officially confirmed plans to open a dedicated Liberty Business Jamaica headquarters in Montego Bay, framing the choice of the western Jamaican city as a deliberate strategic decision. Price noted that Montego Bay is a critical hub for two of Jamaica’s most important economic sectors: tourism and business process outsourcing (BPO), both of which suffered catastrophic damage when Category 5 Hurricane Melissa swept through the island last October.

In the immediate aftermath of the storm, Price recounted, Liberty Business deployed emergency satellite and mobile connectivity solutions to impacted businesses across western Jamaica, and was the only mobile network provider that maintained operational service in large parts of Montego Bay throughout the crisis. “Some of you had immediate needs that we were able to address right away using satellites and mobile solutions. I’m also proud to say that in the aftermath of the storm we were largely the only mobile network running in Montego Bay,” Price told the gathered stakeholders.

The $85 million spent on post-Melissa recovery and upgrades marks the latest in a series of large-scale investments by the company, coming on the heels of major recovery spending following Hurricane Beryl in 2024. Price emphasized that despite the significant capital outlay, the investment is critical to supporting Jamaica’s business community and residents. Much of the post-storm recovery work in Montego Bay focused on hardening infrastructure for long-term resilience: crews moved vulnerable aerial transmission lines underground and replaced aging copper network infrastructure with modern fibre-optic cabling.

Remarkably, Price reported, the majority of Montego Bay’s business community had their connectivity restored within two to three months after the hurricane. As of the launch, 82% of the company’s fixed-network customers across the impacted area have been fully reconnected, with work ongoing to restore service to the remaining 18%, and mobile service is almost entirely back to pre-storm levels. Network traffic has jumped nearly 40% since the storm, a shift Price said reflects Jamaica’s accelerating transition to digital-first services across all sectors. To boost future resilience, multiple mobile cell sites in St James Parish now have permanent satellite backup power and connectivity.

Price also highlighted the scale of Liberty Business’s regional footprint: the division operates one of the largest digital infrastructure networks across the Caribbean, with roughly 50,000 kilometers of sub-sea fibre-optic cable and more than 17,000 kilometers of terrestrial fibre spanning 30 regional markets. Notably, the company provides wholesale connectivity services to competing telecom providers across the region, and even supplies internet connectivity to Starlink, Elon Musk’s satellite internet firm. The hurricane recovery experience, Price said, reinforced how critical resilient communications infrastructure is to national disaster preparedness and ongoing business continuity.

“Technology is not abstract. The solutions we provide have a direct impact on livelihoods and national resilience,” Price added.

Montego Bay Mayor Richard Vernon welcomed the company’s expanded presence and new headquarters, noting that rapid urban growth in the city, driven by an influx of workers to the tourism and BPO sectors, has created increased demand for housing and strained existing public and private infrastructure. Digital tools such as resilient communications networks, smart data management, and digital advisory services, Vernon said, will be critical to supporting sustainable urban planning, improving municipal services, and cementing Montego Bay’s position as Jamaica’s top investment destination. He added that the city is eager to expand its partnership with Liberty Business beyond information and communications technology.

“In short, this launch is a story of convergence: a company redefining its identity, a city undertaking modernity, and a nation embracing digital transformation. Together, these threads weave a narrative of resilience, opportunity, and progress. So we are not merely hosting a brand launch; we are embracing a partner in this journey to become a safe, vibrant, and digitally empowered city,” Vernon said.

Jamaica-based property developer First Rock Real Estate Investments has pulled off a notable return to profitability in 2025, driven by skyrocketing rental revenue and upward property value revaluations, but the firm still faces significant headwinds including negative operating cash flow, ongoing debt restructuring and heavy reliance on luxury residential sales to maintain adequate liquidity.

According to newly released financial results, the company logged a net profit of US$3,327 attributable to shareholders for the 2025 calendar year. This result marks a sharp reversal from the US$8.89 million net loss the firm posted in the prior year. The profit turnaround was fueled by two key factors: a 663% year-over-year surge in rental income, which reached US$1.23 million, and a US$4.44 million gain from upward revaluation of the company’s investment property portfolio. Without the non-cash revaluation boost, however, First Rock would still face material earnings pressure, company filings show.

The dramatic jump in recurring rental revenue aligns with First Rock’s publicly stated strategic pivot toward stabilizing commercial and income-producing real estate assets, a move designed to cut the firm’s historical reliance on one-off development project sales. Even with this top-line improvement, audited financial statements reveal ongoing strain on the company’s cash position. Operating cash flow registered a negative US$5.84 million for the year, while annual interest expenses nearly doubled to hit US$1.73 million amid a broader high interest rate environment that has pushed up financing costs across the global and local real estate sectors. First Rock remains in active negotiations with creditors to refinance maturing short-term debt and secure additional working capital to fund its ongoing operations.

At the center of the firm’s near-term cash generation strategy is the near-completed Hambani luxury residential development located in Kingston 6. In a disclosure dated April 30, transaction advisor Mayberry Investments confirmed that seven luxury villas at the development have received practical completion certificates, and all seven are already under contract to buyers. Completed units are priced between US$1.8 million and US$2.3 million, and Mayberry noted that proceeds from sales to date are enough to cover all remaining development costs and leave a surplus of cash to support other corporate obligations.

First Rock Chief Executive Officer Ryan Reid explained that the company’s current capital structure was intentionally structured to tie debt repayment timelines to development completion and unit sales. “Unit sales are indeed a key part of our repayment strategy, and that’s really by design, which reflects the direct alignment between our development pipeline and our capital structure,” Reid told the Jamaica Observer in written comments.

A review of the company’s balance sheet shows 15% year-over-year expansion in total assets, which grew to US$65.8 million at the end of 2025. Total liabilities also climbed, rising from US$31.5 million in the prior year to US$40 million in 2025. Outstanding corporate bonds jumped sharply to US$19.1 million, while combined current and non-current long-term loans remained elevated at roughly US$16 million. Audit notes reveal that some of First Rock’s newest financing arrangements carry interest rates as high as 18%, underscoring the steep cost of capital facing heavily leveraged property developers operating in Jamaica’s current high interest rate landscape.

Reid emphasized that growing recurring rental revenue will be the core driver of improved operating cash flow going forward. “The revaluation gains reflect genuine value creation in our portfolio, but we absolutely understand that cash generation is important, hence the massive movement in our rental income year on year,” Reid told Business Observer. “We expect operating cash flow to further improve meaningfully.”

Even as the company works through ongoing debt refinancing discussions, First Rock is advancing plans for two regional acquisitions in Costa Rica and Martinique, with a combined transaction value of US$28 million. Reid stressed that the planned purchases are not aggressive expansion into speculative development, but rather a targeted move to accelerate growth in recurring cash flow. “The acquisitions we’re pursuing are not about expansion for its own sake, they are highly selective opportunities that we believe will generate returns faster than greenfield developments would. These are fully tenanted rental income opportunities,” Reid said. “In each case, the entry price, existing entitlements, and near-term development potential mean these assets contribute to cash generation rather than stretching it further.”

Auditors from Ernst & Young, the firm that signed off on First Rock’s 2025 financial statements, identified investment property valuation as a key audit matter. They noted that investment properties and properties held for sale collectively account for roughly 50% of the company’s total assets as of year end. After years of debt-fueled expansion, First Rock now faces growing pressure to prove that its evolving rental-focused business model can generate sustained, stable cash flow, reducing the firm’s current heavy reliance on non-cash property revaluations and irregular development sales to deliver positive bottom-line results.

Jamaican manufacturing and distribution conglomerate Seprod Limited has reported a near 100% jump in first-quarter net profit, a surge driven almost entirely by a one-time gain from the strategic divestment of its subsidiary International Biscuits Limited (IBL), even as slowing consumer demand across Jamaica and Trinidad & Tobago dragged down core operating results for multiple group businesses.

Completed on February 28, the IBL sale forms a core part of Seprod’s long-term strategy to cut group-level debt and streamline its asset portfolio to align with future growth priorities. According to the firm’s first-quarter cash flow disclosures, the disposal generated a net cash inflow of $1.71 billion for the company.

In its official Q1 report, Seprod framed the divestment as a deliberate strategic move, noting that offloading IBL allowed the group to refocus its resources on core priorities aligned with long-term value creation. Accounting records show the firm logged a $20.62 million loss from discontinued IBL operations for the quarter, paired with a $921.86 million gain on the disposal of the subsidiary. Based on IBL’s reported net assets of $913.96 million as of December 2024, the purchase price from the buyer worked out to roughly $784.20 million above IBL’s net asset valuation.

For the three-month period ending March 31, Seprod posted a consolidated net profit of $1.65 billion, marking a 95% increase from the $849.92 million recorded in the same period last year. However, the impressive headline growth masks underlying weakness in core operations: excluding the $921.86 million one-time disposal gain, consolidated net profit would have come in at just $730.83 million, down from the prior year’s baseline.

Overall group revenue slipped 3% year-over-year to $36.42 billion, a decline that Seprod attributes in large part to ongoing disruption to the HORECA (hotels, restaurants, cafés, and catering) channel in the wake of Hurricane Melissa. The downturn is even more pronounced at AS Bryden & Sons Holdings Limited (ASBH), Seprod’s 80% controlled subsidiary, which saw a 6% drop in consolidated revenue to US$141.19 million (equal to $22.13 billion). ASBH’s net profit plummeted from US$3.23 million in the prior-year quarter to just US$67,000 in the latest period.

Much of ASBH’s profitability decline stems from performance issues at Caribbean Producers (Jamaica) Limited (CPJ), its 79.99% owned subsidiary. CPJ’s revenue fell 28% to US$33.13 million in the quarter, swinging from a prior-year net profit of US$1.81 million to a net loss of US$1.17 million this quarter.

In its own Q1 report, ASBH outlined a mix of external and internal headwinds driving the weak results: higher alcohol duties in Trinidad & Tobago, softening consumer demand across key product categories, persistent disruptions to Jamaica’s hospitality and tourism sectors following Hurricane Melissa, and elevated overhead costs tied to the group’s ongoing regional expansion and integration projects. The soft operating performance across multiple business units comes as Seprod continues its push to streamline its portfolio, cut debt, and boost efficiency against a backdrop of broadly slowing consumer demand across the Caribbean region.

Despite the widespread operating headwinds, Seprod’s leadership struck an optimistic tone about the firm’s long-term trajectory, noting that cost containment efforts have so far kept expense growth in check. The group’s gross profit margin dipped only marginally, from 26.73% to 26.64%, even in the face of higher input costs and lower top-line revenue. Overall operating expenses rose just 1% ($90 million) in the quarter, a figure Seprod says reflects active management efforts to control unnecessary spending. Net profit attributable to Seprod shareholders jumped from $548.40 million in the prior-year quarter to $1.67 billion in the latest period.

Signed by Chairman Paul B Scott and Chief Executive Officer Richard Pandohie, the Q1 report reaffirmed the group’s core strategic priorities: “We remain focused on margin resilience, cash generation, cost optimisation, disciplined growth, and improving return on equity (ROE). These initiatives are foundational to building a more efficient, integrated, and performance-driven organisation.”

Over the quarter, Seprod’s total consolidated asset base contracted 5% to $137.44 billion, with current assets totaling $75.15 billion. The firm purchased 5.29 million ASBH 6.00 preference shares for US$5.29 million ($812.81 million) during the period, after existing shareholders Ambergate Limited and Fairchild Limited cut their positions in the subsidiary.

Total group liabilities fell 9% to $86.78 billion, driven by reductions in accounts payable and the current portion of long-term debt, with total consolidated equity coming in at $50.66 billion, $39.94 billion of which is attributable to shareholders. Seprod’s full audited 2025 financial statements are currently delayed, as ASBH has not yet completed its own audited disclosures; ASBH has indicated it expects to submit its completed financials by May 31.

As of Monday’s market close, Seprod’s share price stood at $82.43, leaving the stock down 2% year-to-date in 2026 with a total market capitalisation of $75.09 billion. The firm has also declared a $0.605 per share dividend, totaling $551.12 million, which will be paid out on June 5 to shareholders recorded on the company’s books as of May 15. While the per-share dividend matches the 2025 payout, the total payment is larger than last year’s $443.80 million, a change driven by a July 2025 share swap that increased Seprod’s stake in ASBH to 80% after the firm issued 177,398,683 new ordinary shares.