Jamaica’s rural communities are once again feeling the pinch of limited financial access, as new performance figures reveal a widening gulf between cash machine reliability in the capital and the rest of the island.
Reliability Gap Between City and Countryside
Fresh data from the Bank of Jamaica (BOJ) shows that automated banking machines (ABMs) across the island averaged 91.5% uptime in June 2025 — falling short of the central bank’s 95% benchmark. But behind this national figure lies a deeper imbalance: Kingston’s machines stayed up more often, while rural parishes consistently fell behind, recording an average uptime of just 90.7%.
For Jamaicans outside the capital, the numbers translate into real, daily setbacks. Trips to towns where the lone machine is down mean extra taxi fares, wasted hours, and in many cases, missed sales opportunities for small vendors.
Banks at Both Ends of the Spectrum
The data highlights a split performance among financial institutions.
- National Commercial Bank (NCB) and First Global Bank stood out, with near-flawless availability across several regions.
- Scotiabank, however, reported the weakest results, dropping to as low as 82.9% uptime in non-capital towns. The bank cited issues with cash mix adjustments, equipment repairs, and external factors like power outages.
In Clarendon, JN Bank’s availability plunged to 57.1%, while in St Catherine, a third of Scotiabank’s machines were completely out of service.
The Human Cost of Downtime
For market vendor Marcia Brown in St. Elizabeth, the gap isn’t an abstract figure.
“When the ATM doesn’t work, I have to spend money just to find another one. It takes away from what little profit I make,” she said.
Other parishes reported extended delays in getting machines fixed — in some cases, taking entire working days before service was restored.
Policy and Infrastructure Challenge
The BOJ stresses that these figures are based on submissions from banks and are not independently verified, but the publication of the data reflects a broader effort toward transparency.
For policymakers, the numbers spotlight an uncomfortable truth: while digital banking infrastructure is expanding, access to basic cash services remains fragile outside urban hubs. Bridging this gap will be critical if Jamaica is to build an inclusive financial system that doesn’t leave rural citizens stranded at broken machines.
