Corporate boards across the Caribbean must take greater responsibility for policing their own institutions, Bank of Jamaica (BOJ) Governor Richard Byles said on Tuesday, warning that some financial conglomerates have grown so large and span multiple territories that no single regulator has full visibility.
“We must also consider that the Caribbean financial system is deeply interconnected. We have conglomerates operating across multiple jurisdictions, business models, and cultures,” Byles told delegates at the Caribbean CFO Summit 2026 in Kingston.
The Caribbean CFO Summit 2026 was held under the theme ‘Redefining Economic Leadership: Building Resilient Financial Ecosystems in Emerging Markets’.
He explained that when an institution operates in Jamaica, Trinidad, Barbados and beyond – each with its own rules and supervisors – cracks can develop between jurisdictions. That reality, he argued, places a heavier burden on boards to hold management accountable in both normal and crisis periods.
“This is not just the responsibility of regulators. It is a shared responsibility across boards, management teams, CFOs, and finance leaders across the region. Together, we must build systems that are not only profitable, but sustainable; not only competitive, but resilient,” Byles said.
He laid out three expectations for boards: maintain a strong presence of independent directors free from conflicts of interest; ensure that membership reflects expertise in finance, technology, accounting and law; and have key committees – particularly risk, audit and governance – chaired by independent members. “Unchecked consensus weakens institutions; constructive challenge strengthens them,” he added.
Byles also warned CFOs that compressed margins and rising performance expectations create temptations to stretch risk limits – precisely when discipline matters most. “Resilience is not built on peak profits. It is built on profits earned within clearly defined risk boundaries,” he said.
The governor highlighted reforms under way in Jamaica, including legislation to resolve failing financial institutions without taxpayer bailouts and plans for a ‘Twin Peaks’ supervisory framework to strengthen oversight.
His warning comes as Jamaica continues to rebuild from the Category 5 hurricane that struck last October, causing damage equivalent to more than half of the country’s GDP. He cited that storm, along with COVID-19 post-pandemic inflation and Hurricane Beryl in 2024, as evidence that volatility is now structural rather than episodic.
Byles argued that traditional measures of success – GDP growth, profits, market share – are no longer sufficient. Institutions must also be judged by their ability to withstand shocks, while regulators across the region need to coordinate responses before a crisis hits.
Jamaica, he noted, has made progress by building foreign reserves to a record US$6.8 billion, reducing national debt through years of fiscal discipline, and putting catastrophe insurance mechanisms in place. The BOJ has also tailored international banking standards to local conditions, adopting key elements of Basel III while adjusting them to fit Jamaica’s financial system.
business@gleanerjm.com
