KINGSTON, Jamaica, CMC—The Bank of Jamaica (BoJ) says that from July 1 this year, it will no longer exchange coins of the Canadian Dollar (CAD), Great Britain Pound (GBP), and Euro (EUR) at its banking counter.
The BoJ said that as a part of its banking services offered to the public, it facilitates the exchange of specified foreign currency banknotes and coins for Jamaica dollars at its banking counter.
It said it viewed the exchange of foreign currencies as a public good and, based on this, has been exchanging CAD, GBP, and EUR coins for the Jamaica dollar for many years.
“However, in recent years, it has become increasingly challenging to offer this service for non-United States Dollar (USD) foreign coins, primarily due to the unavailability of options for repatriating these coins to their respective issuing central banks.
“As a result, after giving value for these coins at our banking counter, the Bank cannot obtain value in return.”
The BoJ said that in the absence of repatriation arrangements for these non-USD coins, it has decided to cease the acceptance of these foreign coins at its banking counter effective 1 July 2024.
“The decision to cease accepting non-USD coins is consistent with the practice of central banks in the Caribbean region that are faced with similar difficulties,” the BoJ said, expressing its regrets for any inconvenience caused by this decision.
The BoJ reassures the public that it will continue to accept and exchange USD, CAD, GBP and EUR banknotes as well as USD coins, for which the counter rates are published on its website, and will keep the public advised of any further developments in this regard.
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