National Commercial Bank Jamaica (NCBJ) has opened a new chapter in its digital-payments playbook, rolling out projects that attack cash usage on every front—from toll plazas to smartphones. The bank already commands roughly 70 per cent of all point-of-sale (POS) devices deployed nationwide and operates the island’s largest network of ABMs, giving it an unrivalled springboard for scale.
Toll booths go contactless
Since March 2024 every Highway 2000 East-West plaza has been fitted with NCBJ tap-to-pay terminals. Motorists now flash a debit or credit card and roll through, a change that has tripled card transaction volumes in just over a year. TransJamaican Highway (TJH), the highway’s operator, is integrating its back-office systems with NCBJ to enable “open tolling”—a fully automated, collector-free experience—on the way to its target of 80 per cent cashless toll payments by 2028.
TJH’s own numbers show why the bank is leaning in. Cash still accounted for 61 per cent of toll payments as recently as 2022, representing nearly US $39 million. Revenues have since climbed to US $83 million on 28.6 million vehicles, giving NCBJ a clear runway to convert huge cash volumes to cards.
Lynk wallet gets a virtual Visa upgrade
On the retail side, subsidiary TFOB (2021) Ltd is awaiting Bank of Jamaica approval to embed a virtual Visa card inside the Lynk mobile wallet. Once cleared, Lynk balances will be spendable anywhere online or at any contactless POS via a tap-enabled smartphone—extending a wallet that already supports Jam-Dex, local remittances, and in-app QR payments.
Your phone is now the reader
For micro- and small-business owners, NCBJ’s ePOS app turns any NFC-equipped Android handset or tablet into a certified payment terminal; merchants simply download the app, log in, and start accepting tap transactions without buying extra hardware. An ongoing promotion even waives service fees for early adopters.
Battling an 80 % cash habit
Despite these advances, four out of five Jamaican transactions are still settled in notes and coins. NCBJ’s multi-pronged push—toll booths, virtual cards, e-commerce via Fygaro, and phone-based POS—aims to carve deep inroads before rival banks launch similar solutions; CIBC Caribbean, for instance, is prepping its own tap-on-phone product.
Payments division powers group earnings
The strategy is already paying off. In the half-year to 31 March 2025, the payments segment booked a 10 % revenue climb to J$19 billion, lifting operating profit 40 % to almost J$2 billion and underscoring digital fees as an engine of group growth.
By wiring highways, handsets, and wallets into a single contactless ecosystem, NCBJ is betting that convenience—not coercion—will push Jamaica toward a truly cash-light economy, one tap at a time.
