Jamaica Passes Virtual Assets Bill Amid Industry Criticism
Jamaica's House of Representatives passed the Virtual Assets Service Providers Act, 2026 on September 30, 2026, after introducing three amendments. The bill aims to establish a licensing and anti-money-laundering framework for virtual asset service providers operating in Jamaica.
The Act requires these businesses to meet anti-money-laundering standards comparable to those governing banks, including customer identity verification, transaction monitoring, and suspicious activity reporting. This is aligned with Financial Action Task Force requirements that Jamaica must satisfy.
Opposition finance spokesman Julian Robinson argued the bill was 'almost entirely defensive' and prioritized risk containment over supporting the growth of a domestic digital asset industry. He pushed for provisions covering stablecoins, tokenisation, and industry development alongside risk containment, but his proposals were not adopted in the final version.