Jamaica fumbling with Fintech. Payments Problem, Still.

It is no secret that doing business online for micro and small business owners ends at the most critical part; Payments.

Several polls and surveys performed by the Jamaica Technology & Digital Alliance (JTDA) to support the SME Go Digital initiative revealed some concerning numbers about the SME community; while about 80% of many business owners have some type of social media account and approximately 60% have websites, only 40% are selling their goods and services online. Those who are trying to sell online are either struggling with the high cost associated with the more established payment portals, having cash flow challenges due to long payment deposit time frames for PayPal or are sharing their personal or business bank account numbers across the World Wide Web. 

To whom do we owe thanks for this massive inconvenience and possible security risk that our SMEs are experiencing? Hard to tell whether it’s the BOJ, the Banks, the government, or the underground network of criminals that have caused us to be on everyone’s blacklist. More accurately, it would be all of the above. The truth is it doesn’t matter. At the end of the day, we are at a tipping point where rapid transformation is required in Fintech to ensure the viability of our most critical business sector. This is a collaborative effort that will require multiple players to enter the space and providing fintech solutions for various problems. For entrepreneurs, the key is being able to do business online locally and globally with ease and not having their revenues sucked dry by processing fees and charges. 

There are some signs that we are heading in a more possibility-filled direction. The recent shift by Amazon to allow Jamaican businesses to register on the Amazon platform to sell goods using their local information. There is massive earning potential for small businesses that choose to go the Amazon route, as long as they abide by the requirements of the platform. 

A key component that should not be overlooked is the banking requirements and keeping the service level agreements for delivery. 

Locally, there are also similar platforms that allow small businesses that don’t have the time, patience, or money to manage their eCommerce operations. Yet, the uptake on these platforms could be significantly enhanced if there was a richer eCommerce experience in the environment in general. The efforts in the last few years to create payment gateways that are affordable for SMEs whose average revenue is less than $15million per annum have been slow and to date remain somewhat unresolved. Not to mention the restrictions that have shackled the creative potential of young Fintech entrepreneurs who are trying to solve the problem. 

As we race to catch up with the rest of the world to enable e-commerce and ease of doing business, it’s clear that being behind the eight ball in this exponentially growing innovation means incremental steps may not be the way. As a country, we will need to leapfrog our current solutions just to compete globally, before we can take a leading role in the region.

Jamaica Technology & Digital Alliance was contributed by JTDA President Stacey Hines