Dear Claudienne,

I’m an entrepreneur with a registered business in the USA. I have a personal savings account with National Commercial Bank (NCB); my bank account was opened at the May Pen branch in Clarendon. My business is one of the best things that ever happened in my life, and it’s something I was placed on this earth to do. I’m not a person who loves the hype life so all the money I earn I save, because no one knows when it’s going to be rainy days.

I had multiple bank accounts in the USA and I transferred all the funds from my US-based account to my local NCB bank account because I wanted my money to be in one place. NCB has my bank account frozen for compliance concerns, as they said that they need proof of the source of funds. They had contacted me for a meeting, which I happily went to without any representative because I know my funds are clean money.

In the meeting, I spoke with the head of fraud prevention and a supervisor in New Kingston at the head office at NCB Atrium. In the meeting we spoke about the transaction that was done with my local NCB account. I verified the transaction, but they requested that I show proof of my bank statements from my US bank.

I didn’t have the bank statement because I was expecting to have a meeting and did not think that I needed to carry any documents. The meeting ended, and they told me once I showed proof of the transactions with my bank statement, they would go ahead with the process. The following day, I communicated with them and let them know that I had my bank statements. They advised me that it needed to be signed and stamped by the bank to verify that everything was legitimate. That wasn’t any problem at all as I took the necessary steps to get the bank statements signed and stamped by the bank. After I told him that I got the bank statements signed and stamped by the bank they did not arrange to have another meeting with me, because I was fully prepared with all my documents and all my proof to verify my money.

I eventually went back to the Atrium but we didn’t have another meeting. What happened is that he (the manager) took my documents and said he would get back to me. I then told him, “Sir, this wasn’t what we agreed on.”

They told me that I needed to present my documents to them in person. I just think he took my documents and didn’t pay any attention. I waited for two months to hear from the bank but they still did not contact me. Each time I called, the manager kept telling me the same thing — that they are still doing their investigations.

I thought that after I showed them the documents I would have been able to access my account. I was getting really frustrated because I needed my money for my daily expenses. I can’t even travel anywhere because I can’t afford it. I borrowed money to get a legal representative on my case because they are not communicating with me. After the bank communicated with my attorney, they still keep saying that they are waiting on the relevant department to get to them so that they can get back to me.

I know for sure it’s a fact that I am a born Jamaican and I came from nothing, and to make it out of the ghetto, it’s really hard and you get a fight. A black man always has it hard in life. I really need to get access to my hard-earned money because I have plans for my money, and this is a bit of a setback because this has been the situation for almost one year.

Can you imagine this? You can just sign into your bank account, just look at your money, and you can’t even withdraw $2000 to buy your lunch? This is getting very frustrating as I need money to continue my life. I am in limbo and I worked very hard to obtain my money.

RH

Dear RH,

Tell Claudienne sought clarification from NCB as follows:

“Please clarify what are the banking regulations in regard to deposits made to bank accounts. Please clarify if the banking regulations have a time frame for the banks to investigate and determine if the deposits to an account are legitimate or have money laundering elements.

Do the banking regulations state a time frame within which the banking institutions must complete their investigations and enable depositors to have access to the funds in their accounts?

NCB responded as follows:

“Please see response below to be attributed to National Commercial Bank Jamaica Limited (NCBJ): This matter involves confidential compliance procedures, and as such, we are unable to discuss specifics at this moment. Thank you for your understanding of our commitment to maintaining privacy and regulatory standards.”

Tell Claudienne also sought clarification from Bank of Jamaica (BOJ) in regard to your concerns and advised you to write to BOJ. On October 23, 2024 the column sent you the email addresses for two senior executives at BOJ.

The Tell Claudienne query to BOJ stated the following:

(1) Please clarify if the banking regulations have a time frame for the banks to investigate and determine if the deposits to an account are legitimate or have money laundering elements.

(2) Please clarify if the banking regulations state a time frame within which the banking institutions must complete their investigations to enable depositors access to funds in their accounts

(3) Will the proposed legislation as stated in the Bank of Jamaica full-page advertisement in
The Sunday Gleaner on May 28,2023 protect consumers from the problems R H states he is having with his bank account?

A section of the BOJ advertisement stated the following:

“The Bank of Jamaica is actively working with the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service on legislation meant to establish a consumer protection framework for users of product services for entities regulated by BOJ.

The draft Bill is currently being reviewed by BOJ as the legislative process has commenced. This Bill, once enacted by Parliament, will provide the BOJ with a consumer protection mandate and the relevant powers to better protect consumers.”

Please also clarify if the following responses from Huntley Medley, BOJ, on July 12, 2023 to a Tell Claudienne query about the Bank of Jamaica full-page advertisement in The Sunday Gleaner on May 28, 2023 have any relevance to deposits to bank accounts and the problems RH is experiencing.

A section of the BOJ advertisement stated the following:

“The Bank of Jamaica is actively working with the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service on legislation meant to establish a consumer Protection framework for users of product services for entities regulated by BOJ.

The draft Bill is currently being reviewed by BOJ as the legislative process has commenced. This Bill once enacted by Parliament will provide the BOJ with a consumer protection mandate and the relevant powers to better protect consumers.”

Mr Huntley Medley’s response to Tell Claudienne on July 12, 2023 stated that:

“The bank continues to support the work of the development of a consumer protection framework for Jamaica. The draft consumer protection Bill is currently being reviewed by the Bank, and upon completion will be subject to the legislative review process prior to enactment. We must, however, advise that pursuant to the Government of Jamaica’s policy decision, announced by the Minister of Finance and the Public Service (“the Minister”) on 23 January 2023, to pursue a Twin Peaks Regulatory Framework, financial regulation will be separated

into two broad functions: (i) conduct of business or market conduct regulation and

consumer protection and (ii) prudential supervision.

Supervisory remit for market conduct- and consumer protection-related matters in respect of deposit-taking institutions, ie commercial banks, merchant banks, and building societies as well as non-bank financial institutions, will now reside with the Financial Services.”

The following is the response from Jide Lewis (Mr), deputy governor, Financial Institutions Supervisory Division, Bank of Jamaica, to Tell Claudienne on RH’s concerns:

“Reference is made to your correspondence received by electronic mail on 24 October 2024 in relation to a complaint from RH, a customer of the National Commercial Bank Jamaica Limited (NCBJ).

In this regard, we would wish to outline and clarify the role and scope of the Banking Services (Deposit Taking Institutions) (Customer Related Matters) Code of Conduct, 2016 (“the Code”) to provide some context for our response. The Code, which was issued on 29 August 2016 pursuant to Section 132(4)(b) of the Banking Services Act (BSA), establishes minimum standards of good banking practice for deposit-taking institutions (DTIs) — ie commercial banks, merchant banks and building societies — in their relationships and activities with consumers of their financial products and services. To this end, Bank of Jamaica’s remit under the Code is to ensure that banks and other BSA licensees provide the relevant disclosures to customers by establishing and implementing mechanisms for handling customer complaints. In this regard, customer complaints received by the bank are reviewed to determine whether there has been a breach of the Code by the DTI or other BSA licensee.

We must also advise that the Code does not confer on Bank of Jamaica (“the Bank”) the power to resolve complaints or disputes between DTIs and their customers. However, the bank will always engage the DTI once it has received a customer complaint, and [will] take steps to ensure that the DTI customer’s complaint submission and the complaints process carried out by the DTI are in accordance with the requirements of the Code.

Additionally, the Code requires all DTIs to investigate complaints submitted to its offices and communicate the outcome of same within a prescribed time frame. Of note, the final determination on each complaint is made solely by the DTI, based on the outcome of its own internal investigative review process.

As it relates specifically to this matter, RH has now escalated the complaint to Bank of Jamaica through his attorney-at-law. We will respond to the attorney at-law formally and also write to NCBJ to determine the outcome of their investigation.

Response to Specific Queries

1. Time Frame for Bank Investigations

The Proceeds of Crime Act, Banking Services Act, and the Code do not explicitly mandate a specific time frame for DTIs to complete investigations of customer accounts. However, the Code requires complaints to be acknowledged within five (5) business days and resolved within fifteen (15) business days, where possible. Prolonged delays should be communicated to the customer, providing reasons and expected timelines for resolution.

In RH’s case, BOJ has formally engaged NCBJ to ascertain the status of their investigation and to ensure the matter is addressed in a timely manner.

2. Proposed Consumer Protection Legislation

The BOJ is actively collaborating with the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service to develop a consumer protection framework. Once enacted, this framework will enhance the regulatory oversight for market conduct and consumer protection matters, including timelines for addressing consumer complaints. As part of the Twin Peaks Regulatory Framework, these responsibilities will transition to the Financial Services Commission (FSC), with BOJ retaining prudential supervision responsibilities for DTIs and extending same for non-banks. As referenced by the finance minister, this legislation is expected to be enacted within the next 18-24 months.

3. Relevance of July 2023 Responses

The July 2023 response from Huntley Medley of BOJ is relevant to the matter impacting RH. The proposed legislation aims to establish a comprehensive framework for consumer protection. While the draft Bill is under review, the BOJ continues to oversee compliance with the existing Code and ensure that DTIs uphold their obligations regarding customer complaints.

We thank you for bringing your concerns to the attention of the central bank.”

Have a problem with a store, utility, a company? Telephone 876- 936-9436 or Cell/Whatsap #876-484-1349 or write to: Tell Claudienne c/o Sunday Finance, Jamaica Observer, 40-42 1/2 Beechwood Avenue, Kingston 5; or e-mail:edwardsc@jamaicaobserver.com. Please include a contact phone number.