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  • Lupus Foundation calls on public to ‘Go Purple’ for World Lupus Day 2026

    Lupus Foundation calls on public to ‘Go Purple’ for World Lupus Day 2026

    KINGSTON, Jamaica — Ahead of the 2026 observance of World Lupus Day on May 10, the Lupus Foundation of Jamaica has issued a public appeal to the nation’s corporate sector, small business owners and everyday citizens to stand in solidarity with Jamaicans living with lupus through a nationwide outreach initiative dubbed ‘Go Purple’.

    Aligning with the global 2026 World Lupus Day theme ‘Make Lupus Visible’ and adopting the local rallying cry ‘One Voice. One Community. One Fight.’, the foundation is pushing for widespread participation in small but meaningful actions that shine a spotlight on lupus, a frequently misunderstood autoimmune condition that often hides its symptoms from plain sight and impacts thousands of people across the island.

    The organization has outlined clear, accessible steps for Jamaican businesses of all sizes to get involved. These include swapping out standard social media profile logos for purple versions to signal solidarity, bathing commercial buildings, office spaces and retail storefronts in purple lighting, and circulating educational lupus awareness content across all their owned digital channels.

    Ordinary members of the public are also invited to add their support to the movement. Simple personal actions include adding purple design elements to personal social media profile pictures, wearing purple clothing or accessories on May 10, and sharing messages of encouragement and awareness to their own social networks to expand the campaign’s reach.

    “Lupus is often called an invisible illness, but together we can make it visible,” shared a senior representative from the Lupus Foundation of Jamaica in a statement announcing the campaign. “By turning our digital spaces and physical environments purple, we are sending a strong, unified message of support, awareness and hope to every person and family affected by this condition across Jamaica.”

    The foundation emphasized that the core goals of the ‘Go Purple’ initiative extend far beyond symbolic action. The campaign is designed to jumpstart a national conversation about lupus, break down common misconceptions about the disease, and build a visible, supportive community for all those navigating its impacts. Through collective public participation, the organization also aims to draw attention to the critical roles that early diagnosis, consistent accessible care, and community backing play in improving outcomes for people living with lupus.

    As Jamaica prepares to join the global lupus awareness movement in 2026, the foundation closed its appeal with a reminder that meaningful change starts small: widespread awareness begins with intentional visibility, and that visibility depends on the participation of every single person across the country.

  • Super Value owner back home after health scare

    Super Value owner back home after health scare

    Nine weeks after being medically evacuated to a United States hospital for emergency treatment of severe pneumonia, one of The Bahamas’ most legendary business figures has returned to his home in New Providence, carrying a critical public health message for his fellow citizens.

    Rupert Roberts, 88, who founded the nation’s largest all-Bahamian grocery chain Super Value and shaped decades of commercial and banking growth across the country, expressed unbridled joy at returning to his home country’s iconic warm climate. “It’s such a blessing to be back in the sunshine,” he shared in an interview shortly after his arrival. In his message to Bahamians, he urged widespread prioritization of personal wellness, emphasizing: “Look after yourselves with a healthy diet and regular exercise. You could develop an illness that The Bahamas is not fully equipped to treat, and a serious medical condition can quickly spiral into costs far beyond what most families can afford.”

    When asked if his near-death health scare had prompted doctors to urge him to step back from his decades-long career, the self-identified workaholic laughed off the suggestion. “No, not at all!” he said. “They told me to keep going, never stop.”

    Roberts fell seriously ill with pneumonia in late February, triggering an outpouring of support from across the nation that he says was a critical part of his recovery. Hundreds of Tribune readers sent prayers and well-wishes, and dozens of Super Value employees answered an urgent call to donate blood to support his treatment when he first became sick.

    “I want to thank every single person — my family, my relatives, every employee, every customer, and the entire country for all their support and prayers,” Roberts said. “That support was more healing to me than any medical treatment, and it’s what brought me home. I had no idea how many people cared about me this way, and I can’t put my appreciation into words.”

    Throughout his nine-week treatment and recovery at St Mary’s, part of the world-renowned Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, Roberts had constant, around-the-clock support from his wife Margaret and his granddaughter Paige Waugh, who works on the Super Value team. “I never would have made it through this without their love, care, and constant presence by my side,” he noted. He also expressed particular gratitude for a well-wish call from Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis, and for the early and consistent care from his personal Bahamian physician Dr Duane Sands, who is also former health minister and current chairman of the Free National Movement.

    Dr Sands visited Roberts two to four times a day in the early stages of his illness, coordinated his transfer to the Mayo Clinic, and set him up for a successful recovery. “I never felt any fear for my life at any point,” Roberts said. “I always knew I was in good hands, from the very start with Dr Sands. I’ve been treated at St Mary’s before several times, so it felt like home even in Minnesota. Doctors from multiple departments came to check on me, and I was even shocked when Bahamian Foreign Affairs Minister Fred Mitchell stopped by with a large bouquet of flowers. Having a fellow Bahamian visit made everything feel so much more comfortable.”

    Roberts confirmed that while he was in the US, medical teams also fixed a long-standing issue with his pacemaker, after one of the device’s leads slipped out of place and required reattachment. Beyond that minor procedure, he said he is now well on his way to a full recovery.

    Despite being away from his business interests for more than two months, Roberts said he never felt disconnected from daily operations. Thanks to a deeply trained management team and consistent communication with staff, “It was just as if I was sitting at my desk every day,” he explained.

    When asked what he missed most during his time in the cold northern US, he answered without hesitation: “The warm Bahamian weather. It’s so great to be back where all my favorite things are, in what I truly believe is the best place in the world to enjoy life. I’m so happy to be back to our 80-degree sunshine — that cold up north was absolutely horrid.”

    Beyond his iconic work building Super Value into the backbone of the Bahamian grocery industry, Roberts has long been a central figure in national banking development. Following the Bahamianisation of the nation’s finance sector, he was appointed chairman of Commonwealth Bank Limited, serving in the role from 1984 to 1992. During his tenure, he led the bank out of years of stagnation under foreign ownership, overseeing explosive growth: the bank relocated its headquarters to a new facility on East Bay Street, opened new branches in Oakes Field and Marsh Harbour, grew total assets by more than 700% to over $125 million, and increased net income from $1.3 million in 1984 to $4 million by 1992.

  • Calls for bridge fix after father dies in Exuma crash

    Calls for bridge fix after father dies in Exuma crash

    A tragic fatal crash off a poorly maintained Bahamian bridge has reignited long-simmering calls for critical infrastructure upgrades, after a retired prison officer who was days away from reuniting with his family lost his life in an incident his loved ones say was entirely preventable.

    Preston McKenzie, a 60-something retired corrections official who had recently moved back to Exuma to be closer to extended family, was scheduled to board a flight to New Providence on April 30 to reunite with his wife and three children. He never arrived for the trip, and his body was later recovered from his partially submerged overturned blue Honda Civic near the Barraterre bridge, according to law enforcement and family statements.

    Authorities confirmed that the George Town Police Station received the initial distress call shortly before noon on April 30, after a local resident spotted the vehicle in the water off the bridge’s northern end. The good Samaritan used a hand tool to gain access to the car and helped pull McKenzie’s body from the wreckage before officers arrived. A local physician pronounced McKenzie dead at the scene, and preliminary police investigations indicate the driver lost control of the vehicle, causing it to veer off the curved bridge into the water below.

    For McKenzie’s daughter, Pruzyia McKenzie, the tragedy is not an accident — it is the avoidable consequence of years of unaddressed safety hazards on the Barraterre bridge. In an emotional interview, she explained that the family grew concerned after her father stopped responding to messages and missed his scheduled flight. The family soon received the devastating confirmation from a relative in Exuma that his body had been found in the water.

    Evidence from the scene backs up the family’s claims of long-standing danger. Video footage obtained by The Tribune shows McKenzie’s vehicle submerged after crossing over the bridge’s inadequate guardrail, with barely any visible signage warning drivers of the sharp curve ahead or the bridge edge. Pruzyia McKenzie noted that her father was not the first driver to go off the bridge — two previous motorists survived similar incidents, but she says repeated warnings about the structure’s flaws have gone unheeded.

    McKenzie was described by his daughter as a loving, humble man with a contagious joyful energy, who often served as the center of social gatherings. After a decades-long career in corrections where he recruited dozens of new officers — many of whom are now grieving his loss — he had been preparing to launch a new small business ahead of the upcoming annual Barraterre festival. The last video his family received from him, taken the night he is believed to have crashed, shows him sharing a toast with friends and repeatedly saying he was bound for heaven.

    Pruzyia McKenzie says the stiffness of her father’s body when it was recovered suggests he had been in the water for more than 12 hours, meaning emergency responders were not alerted to the crash until long after he was gone. She added that the bridge’s core hazards — non-existent nighttime lighting, a sharp curve that restricts driver visibility, insufficient guardrails, and a total lack of proper warning signage — make it a death trap waiting for more victims. Her family’s greatest hope now is that McKenzie’s death will finally force authorities to carry out the long-overdue upgrades, so no other family has to plan a funeral instead of welcoming a loved one home.

    “My daddy was supposed to be here,” Pruzyia McKenzie said through tears. “We were expecting to see my daddy not plan a funeral. We don’t want another life lost to this dangerous bridge.”

  • Pioneering CNN founder Ted Turner dead at 87

    Pioneering CNN founder Ted Turner dead at 87

    American media entrepreneur Ted Turner, the trailblazing innovator who redefined 20th-century broadcast journalism with the 1980 launch of the world’s first 24-hour cable news network CNN, has passed away at 87 years old, CNN confirmed in an official announcement Wednesday.

    A mustachioed Southern native, avid competitive yachter, and prominent philanthropist who built a multi-faceted media and sports empire over his decades-long career, Turner had been living with Lewy Body Dementia, a progressive neurodegenerative disease, in his later years.

    When Turner launched Cable News Network, it upended the traditional broadcast news model that had dominated American television for decades. Unlike existing outlets that restricted news coverage to fixed time slots, CNN committed to continuous, around-the-clock breaking news coverage — a radical concept at the time that would soon reshape global journalism.

    The network catapulted to international fame for its unflinching live coverage of the 1990-1991 Gulf War, a milestone that cemented its reputation as a trusted global news source. Over the following decades, CNN brought live on-the-ground reporting to nearly every major global event, from the dissolution of the Soviet Union to other breaking developments across every continent. Most notably, the network’s decision to keep correspondents stationed in Baghdad through the height of U.S. bombing raids solidified its status as an indispensable source of frontline news, unmatched by competing broadcasters at the time.

    In a statement released following Turner’s death, Mark Thompson, Chairman and CEO of CNN Worldwide, paid tribute to the network’s founder, calling him a towering figure whose innovation laid the groundwork for modern cable news. “Ted is the giant on whose shoulders we stand, and we will all take a moment today to recognise him and his impact on our lives and the world,” Thompson said, adding, “He was and always will be the presiding spirit of CNN.”

    Born Robert Edward “Ted” Turner III in Cincinnati, Ohio in November 1938, Turner’s early life was marked by upheaval. He attended a military boarding school in Tennessee and enrolled at Brown University, but was expelled before completing his degree. When Turner was just 24 years old, his father — struggling with severe financial despair over the family’s struggling advertising company — died by suicide, leaving the young Turner to take over the failing business.

    After stabilizing the company, Turner began expanding into broadcast media, first acquiring a handful of small radio stations across the Southeastern U.S. In 1970, he purchased a struggling Atlanta television station, marking his first major entry into the television industry. A decade later, that local station became the flagship of his newly formed national Turner Broadcasting System, and the steady profits from the venture allowed Turner to invest in his most ambitious project yet: the launch of CNN.

    The unprecedented success of CNN sparked a global revolution in broadcast news, inspiring the launch of dozens of competing 24-hour news networks around the world, including long-time rival Rupert Murdoch’s Fox News, MSNBC, and countless other cable and satellite news outlets across every region.

    Beyond CNN, Turner’s media empire grew to encompass a diverse portfolio of entertainment and niche cable networks, including TBS and TNT for sports and general entertainment, Turner Classic Movies for classic cinema, and Cartoon Network for children’s programming, turning Turner Broadcasting into one of the largest cable media groups in the world by the 1990s.

  • Govt buys GB Power – promises 37% cut

    Govt buys GB Power – promises 37% cut

    One week ahead of the country’s hotly contested general election, the Bahamian government has finalized a deal to purchase all outstanding shares of the Grand Bahama Power Company (GBPC), a move Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis says will deliver an average 37 percent reduction in electricity bills for residential and commercial customers across the island.

    Under the terms of the acquisition, GBPC will align its pricing structure with the national tariff schedule already in use by Bahamas Power and Light (BPL), bringing Grand Bahama’s electricity rates in line with what consumers pay in other regions of The Bahamas. Davis confirmed that cost savings will appear on customer bills as early as the next billing cycle.

    “This decision was made with a clear purpose: to bring down the cost of electricity for the people of Grand Bahama and place this island inside our national energy strategy,” Davis told reporters. He added that the rate cut will reduce overall cost of living for local families and boost the competitiveness of Grand Bahama’s business community, supporting long-term economic growth on the island.

    The government executed the acquisition through a newly created special purpose entity, the Grand Bahama Electricity Company. The transaction received full funding from loans issued by Standard Chartered and Scotiabank, with the Bahamian government serving as guarantor for the borrowing.

    In addition to consumer savings, Davis outlined three core policy benefits of the move: it integrates Grand Bahama into the government’s national energy strategy, strengthening the island’s overall investment climate; it preserves all existing jobs, benefits and the current Bahamian management team at GBPC; and it lays the groundwork for GBPC to access international development support for future energy projects.

    The timing of the high-profile utility acquisition, coming just days before voters head to the polls, has sparked questions about political motivations behind the announcement. Davis rejected calls to delay the reveal until after the election, arguing that governing does not pause during campaign season.

    “Why do I have to defend a move?” Davis said. “Governance don’t stop because election is in the air. We still have to govern, and this transaction has been in the making for quite a while. The process just happened to be ending now. Should we abandon it when we’re going to be able to bring relief to the people of Grand Bahama immediately? We will bring relief now. I have nothing to defend, other than to say I’m bringing relief to Grand Bahama.”

    For the immediate future, GBPC will continue normal operations under a transitional framework designed to avoid service disruptions while pricing structures are aligned with national standards. Over time, the utility will be gradually integrated into the government’s ongoing national energy reform program. The acquisition brings an end to Canadian energy firm Emera’s 13-year tenure as the majority owner of GBPC, after Emera first acquired a stake in the company in 2010.

    Davis thanked Emera for its years of management of the utility, noting that additional details on the transitional process will be released to the public in the coming weeks. Karen Hutt, executive vice-president of corporate development for Emera in The Bahamas, framed the ownership transfer as a “watershed moment” for both the company and the island.

    “This transition of ownership from Emera to the government provides a historic opportunity for Grand Bahama power and the island of Grand Bahama to play a pivotal role in the nation’s energy future under The Bahamas comprehensive and progressive national energy policy,” Hutt said.

    Nikita Mullings, GBPC’s chief operating officer, reassured customers that the ownership change will not impact the utility’s core service commitments. “Today’s announcement is a big one for us here at Grand Bahama Power, but it does not change what defines us,” Mullings said. “Our commitment to safety, reliability and service excellence remains unchanged, and it does not change our shared responsibility to our customers and this community.”

    Energy Minister Jobeth Coleby-Davis explained that the acquisition will deliver tangible benefits to more than 17,000 households and over 1,500 small and medium-sized businesses across Grand Bahama, framing the move as a critical step toward pricing fairness and regulatory consistency across the country. For years, Grand Bahama consumers faced drastically higher electricity rates than customers in other parts of The Bahamas under the previous private ownership structure. To illustrate the gap, Coleby-Davis shared that a 495 kilowatt-hour bill in Grand Bahama’s Pineridge neighborhood cost $200.09, while the same usage on Long Island cost just $121.38 under BPL’s tariff— a difference of nearly $79, translating to a 39.3 percent savings after alignment. Similarly, a 1,424 kilowatt-hour bill in Grand Bahama’s West End cost $700.21, compared to $481.50 for the same usage in New Providence, delivering a 31.2 percent savings for local customers after the change.

    The minister added that the national policy’s low-income protection, which sets a zero base rate for households using less than 200 kilowatt-hours of electricity monthly, will now extend to Grand Bahama, putting thousands of dollars in annual savings back into the pockets of vulnerable families.

    Grand Bahama Minister Ginger Moxey noted that the acquisition addresses decades of constituent complaints about unsustainably high energy costs on the island. “For too long, families and businesses have carried the weight of extremely high electricity costs,” Moxey said. “This Davis administration has heard the cry and meaningful change is here to address this vexing legacy issue, not years down the road, but with your next billing.”

    Davis confirmed that the government has not yet made a decision to change GBPC’s name, and will consult local residents on any potential rebranding. He also linked the acquisition to his broader campaign promise to revitalize Freeport and Grand Bahama’s economy. “I have committed myself that while I have the ability to do it, I will try to bring back the magic to the city and I dare say we are well on the way,” Davis said.

  • RA Williams targets growth from expanded eyecare portfolio

    RA Williams targets growth from expanded eyecare portfolio

    Jamaican pharmaceutical distributor RA Williams Distributors Limited has unveiled a strategic expansion of its ophthalmic product line, positioning the company’s eyecare segment as a key new driver of long-term revenue growth. The move builds on a 14-year distribution partnership with Aristopharma Limited, and adds three new dry eye and ocular surface treatments — Drylief, Neotear, and Hypomer Gel — to the company’s existing portfolio. The expansion is designed to widen local patient access to advanced specialized ocular care, while cementing RA Williams’ footprint in the high-value, prescriber-led eyecare market.

    In an interview with Jamaica Observer and Business Observer this week, RA Williams CEO Audley Reid emphasized that the latest portfolio addition aligns with the firm’s core mission: to deliver quality pharmaceutical solutions that connect global medical innovation to Jamaica’s local healthcare needs. “Fourteen years ago, we entered the eyecare market with Aristobet-N, and our mission remains the same,” Reid explained. “As a pharmacist-led organisation, this expansion into ocular health is not just a product launch; it is a strategic move to capture high-value market share in a segment with strong patient retention and consistent demand.”

    The new range of Aristopharma ocular lubricants directly addresses fast-rising local demand for dry eye and ocular surface therapies, a trend fueled in large part by soaring daily screen time and the growing prevalence of computer vision syndrome. By offering tiered treatment options that cater to everything from mild eye irritation to chronic dry eye conditions, the new products give local clinicians greater flexibility to tailor care to individual patient needs.

    Against a backdrop of recent industry headwinds, including hurricane-related supply disruptions and broad macroeconomic challenges that weighed on the firm’s performance in prior quarters, Reid noted that the timing of the ophthalmic expansion is well-calendar to deliver steady incremental revenue growth over the next 18 to 24 months, supported by the category’s consistent, non-cyclical demand. “By diversifying our portfolio into the ‘wellness and lifestyle’ space, we aim to capture a broader share of consumer spending while insulating revenue against fluctuations in any single sector,” he said.

    The eyecare expansion is the latest step in RA Williams’ broader push to diversify beyond traditional pharmaceuticals into fast-growing wellness and preventive care segments. The firm already notched a notable financial turnaround recently: for the first quarter ending January 31, 2026, RA Williams reported a net profit of JMD $33.5 million, double the profit recorded in the same period a year prior, on total revenues of JMD $541.9 million, reversing losses reported in the previous quarter.

    Earlier this year, the company entered a new partnership with Jamaican dermatologist Dr Romario Thomas to distribute his clinical-grade skincare brand Absolut Skin, and has ramped up efforts to place both new and existing wellness products in the country’s largest retail chains. Reid confirmed that Absolut Skin is in the final onboarding stage for MegaMart, one of Jamaica’s leading big-box retail chains, with products set to hit shelves by the end of the week. “This move complements our existing presence in the pharmacy network as we push to bring clinical-grade skincare to a wider supermarket demographic,” Reid said.

    Established wellness lines from RA Williams have already seen growing traction across alternative retail channels. The brand’s popular Sir Henry Turmeric Immunity Shots have gained a loyal consumer base across warehouse clubs, convenience stores, and gas station networks across the island. “Our retail push has been allowing us to tap into the growing ‘on-the-go’ wellness trend across multiple networks,” Reid added.

    Moving forward, RA Williams will continue to pursue a dual-track growth strategy that balances its core traditional pharmaceutical business with its expanding wellness portfolio. Management will prioritize filling unmet gaps in chronic disease care, while also scaling promising local Jamaican brands with national distribution potential. Reid highlighted that supporting local innovation is a core pillar of the firm’s long-term growth plan.

    “Lines like Sir Henry and Absolut Skin are world-class Jamaican brands, and we see ourselves as the bridge bringing them to a wider national audience,” Reid said. “Whether it is a life-saving medication in a pharmacy or a wellness shot in a supermarket, we are ensuring that R A Williams is present wherever the Jamaican consumer prioritises their health. By combining specialised medical treatments with high-velocity wellness products, we are building a diversified portfolio that is resilient, accessible and uniquely Jamaican.”

  • Brokers hike commission rates on equity trades

    Brokers hike commission rates on equity trades

    Against a backdrop of strong profit growth across Jamaica’s securities brokerage sector, three top local investment firms have moved to raise equity trading commissions and adjust a range of service fees, passing higher operational and regulatory costs to retail and institutional investors.

    The most recent adjustment comes from Barita Investments Limited (BIL), which notified clients of a new fee structure taking effect on June 1. The change covers not just equity trading commissions, but also cheque processing fees, outgoing real-time gross settlement (RTGS) transfer charges, and credit facility fees. Under the new rules, a flat 2% commission will apply to all local equity trades, with a minimum $550 charge for any transaction below $27,500. For trades exceeding $1 million, commission rates can be negotiated between 1% and 2%, a departure from BIL’s previous structure that charged just 0.75% for all transactions executed through JtraderPro, the Jamaica Stock Exchange’s (JSE) digital electronic trading portal.

    In a client notification email, BIL explained the fee updates are designed to ensure its services align with current industry benchmarks, support its expanding suite of financial solutions, and accurately reflect the value the firm delivers to clients.

    Months earlier, Jamaica Money Market Brokers Limited, operating as JMMB Investments, rolled out its own broad fee adjustments on April 17. While the firm cut the GOJ/BOJ bid placement fee from 0.146% to 0.10% (keeping the $5,175 minimum fee intact), it raised charges for RTGS transfers, cheque services, and return/recall transfers. For equity traders using JMMB’s digital Moneyline platform, the published commission rate rose from 0.50% to 0.70%, translating to an actual effective rate increase from 0.435% to 0.609%. Clients requiring assisted trades outside the digital platform saw their commission jump from 1.50% to 2.00%.

    JMMB Securities Limited (JMMBSL), the group’s brokerage arm, earned second runner-up honors from the JSE Best Practice Committee in December 2025 for its 2024 revenue and market activity. JMMB Group’s 2025 annual report ranks JMMBSL first in total number of trades, second in trading volume, and sixth in trading value for 2024. The fee hike comes as the JSE’s Main Market and Junior Market posted $60.58 billion and $6.36 billion in total traded value respectively for 2025, creating an opportunity for brokers to boost top-line revenue through higher commission rates.

    JMMB noted in its client communication that regular fee reviews are standard industry practice, conducted to balance the firm’s operational needs with client requirements. The latest adjustments, it said, align with the firm’s guiding principle of fair fee application, its core values, and its commitment to acting in clients’ best interests.

    The third major adjustment came from VM Wealth Management Limited, which implemented changes effective March 1, mirroring Barita’s move to eliminate discounted digital trading rates. Previously, VM Wealth charged 0.75% for trades executed on JtraderPro, and 1.5% to 2.00% for in-branch assisted trades. Under the new structure, all equity transactions carry a 2.50% trading fee, with an additional $1,500 charge for transaction requests submitted outside VM Wealth’s digital client portal.

    VM Wealth told clients the fee adjustments will allow the firm to continue investing in upgraded digital infrastructure, expanded service channels, and specialized client support teams. The firm emphasized its commitment to delivering efficient, secure, high-quality services to help clients meet their long-term financial goals.

    For years, Jamaican brokers have offered discounted commission rates for digital self-service trades, which require less hands-on staff interaction than assisted transactions. This strategy was designed to incentivize more frequent online trading, ultimately driving higher total revenue through increased transaction volume. Today’s fee adjustments mark a clear strategic shift, driven in large part by brokers’ need to prepare for the upcoming “twin peaks” regulatory framework and other upcoming regulatory changes impacting parent financial groups.

    The adjustments come at a time of robust overall performance for Jamaica’s securities sector. Unaudited data from the Financial Services Commission (FSC) shows total sector revenue grew 17% year-over-year to $87.77 billion for the 2025 calendar year ending December. The FSC attributes this revenue growth to expanded non-interest income, primarily driven by strong profits from debt securities trading. Total sector expenses fell 5% to $72.51 billion, pushing combined pre-tax profit (PBT) for the 19 reporting primary securities dealers to $15.26 billion.

    The FSC noted that the double-digit jump in pre-tax profit stems from concurrent growth in operating revenue and a decline in operating costs. For comparison, the 2024 pre-tax profit figure was restated from an original $0.87 billion gain to a $1.54 billion pre-tax loss, though no explanation has been provided for the revision.

    Despite the strong profit performance, the sector saw a 1% contraction in total assets to $973.43 billion, though total equity and capital improved 2% to $147.96 billion. The aggregate capital adequacy ratio for the 19 reporting firms rose from 20.41% to 22.49% — double the 10% statutory minimum required by regulators.

    Total broker funds under management (FUM) grew 10% year-over-year to a record $1.83 trillion, with collective investment schemes (including unit trusts and mutual funds) rising 9% to $416.47 billion from $383.11 billion in 2024. While FUM is at an all-time high, year-over-year growth has slowed in recent years: FUM stood at $1.72 trillion in December 2022 and $1.59 trillion in December 2021, meaning growth has moderated even as total values hit new records. Equity holdings within managed funds are also growing at a slower pace than in previous periods.

    The overall picture shows that even as Jamaica’s banking and securities sectors deliver rising earnings, consumers and investors are facing higher fees for a growing range of services — even as those services continue to shift to lower-cost digital delivery models.

  • Hambani lifts First Rock ahead of $700-m test

    Hambani lifts First Rock ahead of $700-m test

    Jamaica-based real estate firm FIRST Rock Real Estate Investment Limited has announced a critical breakthrough at its flagship Hambani Estates luxury development, with cumulative sales now covering all outstanding project costs and enabling structured debt repayment – a positive development that comes as the company navigates a $700-million bond maturing this month and ongoing delays to its audited annual financial results.

    According to Mayberry Investments Limited, the financial firm that structured the project’s post-receivership refinancing, seven of the development’s 12 planned luxury townhouses in Kingston 6, St Andrew, have achieved practical completion and are already under sales contract. Proceeds from these transactions, alongside pre-completion sales, are sufficient to cover every projected cost associated with delivering the full Hambani Estates project. This update was publicly released on April 30, the exact same day First Rock confirmed a second extension to the publication timeline for its 2025 audited financial statements. After missing an initial March 1 deadline, the company now targets release of the completed reports by May 15.

    The Hambani Estates project, a 12-unit luxury townhouse development targeted at high-net-worth buyers and real estate investors in Liguanea, has endured a turbulent recent history. In early 2025, Sagicor Bank Jamaica placed the development into receivership after First Rock defaulted on project repayment obligations, triggered by widespread construction delays and weaker-than-projected initial sales. After the receivership appointment, Mayberry Investments stepped in to arrange a new corporate note refinancing package, a restructuring that has now positioned the project to begin phased early repayments to noteholders thanks to the stronger-than-expected sales performance.

    First Rock was able to regain full control of the Hambani Estates development in September 2025, after paying off the outstanding Sagicor Bank facility using a new $15-million US dollar note that carries a 14% annual interest rate and is scheduled to mature in March 2027.

    In a statement accompanying the project update, Mayberry Investments Chief Executive Officer Patrick Bataille noted that both the pace of construction progress and the strength of buyer demand at Hambani Estates have outperformed all post-restructuring projections. Mayberry also confirmed that unit values have risen sharply since the project launched: initial asking prices sat around $1.8 million per unit, and current pricing now sits at roughly $2.3 million. Additional price hikes are projected as more units reach completion and hit the market.

    Public filings for First Rock covering the nine-month period ending September 2025 lay out the company’s current financial position. Total liabilities increased to $40.5 million US dollars, up from $31.5 million at the close of 2024, a jump that the company attributes to increased borrowing to complete the project debt refinancing. As of the end of September, the firm held $5.36 million in cash and cash equivalents. For the nine-month period, First Rock reported a net profit of $1.04 million, with a $31,000 net profit recorded in the third quarter alone.

  • SUMMIT PROPERTY HEADS TO AUCTION

    SUMMIT PROPERTY HEADS TO AUCTION

    Nearly four years after Jamaica-based Novamed Properties Limited purchased the iconic former Knutsford Court Hotel in New Kingston with ambitious plans to redevelop it into an integrated health, business and innovation campus, the high-value central commercial property has been listed for public auction under mortgage default powers.

    The upcoming auction, scheduled for 11:00 a.m. on Wednesday, June 3, 2026, covers the dual-parcel property located at 11 Ruthven Road and 16 Chelsea Avenue, Kingston 10, a prime spot in New Kingston’s corporate and commercial core, according to public auction notice reviewed by Jamaica Observer.

    The listing marks a dramatic reversal of fortune for one of the district’s most recognizable commercial properties. When Novamed first acquired the site from prominent Jamaican hotelier Kevin Hendrickson, the total transaction, including acquisition costs, closing fees and projected renovation works, was valued at more than US$40 million. Official transfer documents filed with Jamaica’s National Land Agency, reviewed by Business Observer, show the property was formally transferred to Novamed in January 2023 for a base purchase price of US$23.5 million. Public title records also reflect a US$14.99 million vendor mortgage held by Knutsford Court Hotel Limited, the selling entity controlled by Hendrickson.

    Industry insiders close to the transaction confirmed the entire purchase was structured as a vendor mortgage, a non-traditional financing arrangement where the seller acts as the lender rather than a commercial bank. Under this agreement, the seller allows the buyer to repay a portion of the purchase price over an agreed timeline, with the underlying property held as collateral for the loan. This structure leaves the seller, in this case Hendrickson through his selling entity, with a secured financial stake in the property even after full ownership is transferred to the buyer.

    As of press time, neither party has issued a public statement on the upcoming auction. Novamed told Business Observer it requires additional time to prepare a comment and has not followed through on a commitment to speak with the outlet, while Hendrickson declined to comment, noting he would need to first consult with his legal team before making any statement.

    The property itself is a substantial commercial asset that has already been partially converted from its original hotel use to a multi-block business centre. According to the auction listing, the site spans a total 3.84 acres (15,539.80 square metres) of prime land, with 102,225 square feet (9,496.93 square metres) of total built space across three main three-storey office blocks and a separate two-storey restaurant and lounge building. Currently, the 175 original air-conditioned hotel rooms have been repurposed for office use, alongside an existing restaurant and bar, 10,000 square feet of flexible meeting and banquet space, a courtyard, swimming pool, and 110 dedicated parking spots.

    Located in the heart of New Kingston, the property offers prime frontage on Ruthven Road with rear access from Chelsea Avenue, placing it within walking distance of major arterial roads Holborn Road and Dominica Drive. It is also a short distance from key local amenities including foreign embassies, diplomatic high commissions, major financial institutions, shopping centres and government public institutions.

    Novamed first announced its acquisition of the Knutsford Court Hotel in 2022 through Novamed Properties, a special-purpose vehicle created specifically to acquire and operate real estate assets focused on healthcare, wellness, lifestyle and commercial use. At the time, the firm laid out bold plans to rebrand the property as the Summit Campus, converting the four-acre site into a cutting-edge smart business and lifestyle village focused on innovation, technology, health and wellness. The new development was designed to complement Novamed’s recently acquired Medical Associates Hospital, forming a fully integrated health and commercial hub in central Kingston. For Hendrickson, the sale allowed him to redirect capital and focus to his ongoing redevelopment of the former Wyndham Hotel on Knutsford Boulevard, where he already owns two other prominent New Kingston hotels: the Courtleigh Hotel and Suites and the Jamaica Pegasus hotel.

    Plans for the ambitious redevelopment hit a major regulatory snag earlier this year, however. Regulatory filings reviewed by Business Observer show that in April 2026, Jamaica’s National Environment and Planning Agency rejected two key applications from Novamed: one for an environmental permit and one for planning permission for the proposed construction of new office and commercial complexes, including a shopping centre larger than 5,000 square metres, as well as a formal change of use for the property from a resort designation to commercial office.

    The agency cited two core reasons for the refusal: the proposed development failed to adequately plan for sufficient parking capacity to accommodate the new commercial use, and Novamed failed to meet minimum application requirements, including the submission of a required community survey and updated land use map for the environmental permit application. It remains unclear whether the rejected applications were part of a revised master plan for the site, or if the regulatory setback contributed to the circumstances that led to the property being listed for auction.

    Photographs of the property taken in 2026 show the partially converted Summit campus, including the marked Chelsea Avenue entrance to the site.

  • WiPay launches new solution for ROOFS programme

    WiPay launches new solution for ROOFS programme

    Following the destructive path of Hurricane Melissa, Jamaica’s $10-billion Restoration of Owner or Occupant Family Shelters (ROOFS) program has marked a major leap forward in disaster recovery delivery with the launch of an artificial intelligence-driven management solution from regional fintech leader WiPay Group.

    The ROOFS initiative, first rolled out in January 2024 to support thousands of households impacted by the storm, has long relied on WiPay’s robust digital infrastructure to power fund and resource tracking, delivered in partnership with the National Payments Company of Jamaica (NPCJ). Up until this upgrade, however, the program faced notable growing pains, particularly when distributing the $75,000 in discretionary recovery cash allocated to eligible households. Long wait times, overcrowded pickup locations, and duplicated scheduling left many recipients frustrated and slowed the pace of rebuilding.

    To resolve these bottlenecks, WiPay has rolled out its upgraded GovPay2.0, an AI-first platform designed to overhaul the entire end-to-end recovery fund disbursement experience. Unlike the early iteration of the program, which focused only on getting funds to recipients, the new system manages every step of the process from scheduling to delivery. To date, the ROOFS program has already distributed more than $8.25 billion in support to affected households, with the vast majority of that allocated as construction materials available through more than 200 partner hardware stores across storm-impacted regions. Eligible households with moderate to severe damage can access between $125,000 and $425,000 in building supplies, accessed via a streamlined system of text notifications and scannable QR codes that eliminates fraud and speeds up pickup.

    Kibwe McGann, Chief Marketing Officer of WiPay Group, explained the core value of the AI upgrade in an official press statement. “We’ve moved from simply distributing funds to managing the entire experience around it. When people no longer have to guess, wait for hours, or deal with overcrowding, the system starts to work the way it should,” he said. The new AI algorithm is built to eliminate scheduling errors, allocating time slots to recipients in a way that avoids overcapacity at any of the more than 100 authorized cash pickup locations across the island, in partnership with local financial services provider Lasco Financial Services Limited. For recipients who prefer not to travel to pickup points, the platform also enables direct, express deposits of cash allocations to personal bank accounts, cutting down on travel costs and the security risks associated with carrying large amounts of physical cash.

    McGann noted that the new solution draws directly from WiPay’s experience delivering similar digital relief management during the COVID-19 pandemic, when the company supported large-scale government grant distribution across the region. “Between the cash appointment management solution and express direct-to-bank solutions, we expect to alleviate the current challenges and pain points,” he added.

    Beyond resolving immediate delivery issues, McGann emphasized the long-term strategic value of digitizing disaster relief programs. The AI-powered system captures granular, real-time data on every step of the recovery process, from how much construction material is requested in specific regions to the pace of fund distribution. This data not only ensures that all funds are used for their intended recovery purposes, eliminating misallocation and fraud, but also provides the Jamaican government with actionable, data-driven insights to improve disaster preparedness for future extreme weather events.

    “As Jamaica continues to address the challenges in western Jamaica, McGann pointed to the benefits of digitising targeted grant relief. Apart from being able to ensure that the funds are used for their intended purpose, he pointed to the data management aspect to support government insights into future events — this includes the quantity of materials demanded and in which specific parts of the country, after a storm. The system that we developed tracks all of that in detail to ensure that if something like this happens again, the Government is now able to take data-driven insights to better prepare the country for what is needed,” McGann said in closing.