Jamaica National UK Office

General information

On Thursday, August 13, 1874, the Westmoreland Building Society held its first Directors’ Meeting. The Reverend Henry Clarke, Founder and first Chairman, presided. In 1967, the Society entered a period of expansion by absorbing the Manchester Mutual Benefit Society, building new offices in Savanna-la-Mar and establishing branches in Santa Cruz, Mandeville, May Pen and Kingston, linking them all by... radio-telephone.

The Westmoreland Building Society stands as a pioneer in Building Society mergers in Jamaica beginning with its merger with the Manchester Mutual, and followed by its association with the Central Building Society in Christiana. By this, the Society was given the confidence and experience to be party to the mergers, which took place in December 1970, uniting the St. James Benefit, the St. Ann Benefit and the Brown’s Town Benefit Building Societies.

The St. James Benefit Building Society, founded in 1874 but incorporated in 1901, began modestly as a penny savings bank for members of the congregation of the Reverend Cork, its founder.

The Brown’s Town Benefit Building Society was the “baby” of the merging societies, having been founded only 74 years before in 1896. Its founder, Mr. A. H. Allwood, a solicitor by profession, started the Society with a desk in his own office where people, including little children, encouraged to save, came to deposit their pennies.

Following this early spate of mergers, which culminated in the formation of the JNBS in 1970, the St. Thomas Mutual Building Society, founded in 1897, formally merged its assets with that of the JNBS in September 1976. The Jamaica Permanent Building Society established in 1878, merged with the JNBS in 1977 and finally in 1983, the St. Mary’s Benefit Building Society established in 1915, merged with the JNBS. The final two acquisitions were Hanover Benefit Building Society in 1996 and Jamaica Savings and Loans Building Society in 2001.

On February 1, 2017, The Jamaica National Group, a powerful, Jamaican mutually-owned global business, became a reality and the country’s third largest commercial bank, JN Bank, was launched.

Following the re-submission of the Jamaica National Building Society (JNBS) application for a commercial banking license in November 2013 to the Bank of Jamaica (BOJ), the application was approved by the BOJ in February 2015. The country’s third largest financial institution at the time, the Society commenced the process to convert the building society into a commercial bank and to restructure the JN Group.

After Jamaica National was granted the banking license by the Bank of Jamaica, an application was made to the Supreme Court to approve the proposed reorganisation.

Following the court’s hearing and approval of the application, a Special General Meeting was held on November 14, 2016, where a majority of JN members voted to approve the new structure. The final decision of the JN members was communicated to the Court, which granted final approval, after which the commercial banking license was signed by the Minister of Finance.

In addition to converting the Jamaica National Building Society (JNBS) into a bank, the JN Group has been restructured to ensure compliance with the new Banking Services Act.