The JN Financial Group, the arm of The Jamaica National Group which oversees financial entities in the conglomerate, has received approval from the Bank of Jamaica (BOJ) to operationalise its flagship strategic initiative – the ONE JN Passport digital, membership and customer experience platform. This, following the Group’s submission to the BOJ in January 2022.
The approval follows the BOJ’s recent thumbs up in July to a subsidiary project to enable the rollout of a new revolutionary credit process. The new credit process will result in significant automation of JN Bank’s loan processes to tremendously quicken decisions and disbursements, as well as strengthen credit risk management.
Approval of the ONE JN Passport permits the JN Financial Group to use the platform to serve the customers of its member companies. It establishes a single “JN identity” for customers and provides ease of access to products and services across specific JN financial companies- initially JN Bank, and in short order JN Fund Managers, JN Life Insurance and JN General Insurance (JNGI), as well as JN Money will be included.
“The ONE JN Passport was conceptualised and developed to provide all members with a single means of doing business with JN, by granting them the ease of access to all JN products and services. Anyone can easily enter into the ‘JN Family’ using this new digital process and access these services swiftly and seamlessly,” Earl Jarrett, chief executive officer of The Jamaica National Group, explained the vision for the ONE JN Passport.
The ONE JN Passport online platform onboards members and automatically updates relevant core systems within the JN Financial Group with the information. This reduces the paperwork traditionally required of frontline employees who serve customers and sell JN products and services.
Data submitted can be shared among companies in the JN Financial Group to accommodate easier product acquisition for customers, who will not need to resubmit information already in the possession of member companies within the JN Financial Group.
“This is an important milestone in our journey to leverage our energies as ‘one’ JN Group of companies. The development of the technology to support the ONE JN Passport; the design of processes and policies to inform onboarding, as well as other due diligence considerations were closely examined,” Mr Jarrett outlined, noting the precision paid to development of the platform, as he reacted to the BOJ announcement.
“Our teams worked with the BOJ to ensure full comprehension of the purpose of the initiative, and to establish that the Group is proceeding in a manner indicative of sound prudential oversight,” he affirmed.
He continued: “There is no precedence for a similar platform or initiative locally. It is an entirely novel way of leveraging technology to add real value and create synergies that will improve how we serve our members.”
The ONE JN Passport online platform, which will be rolled out as an app available in the Google Play Store and the App Store for iOS devices, and will, in addition to allowing users to submit core Know Your Customer (KYC) information, facilitate seamless and swift access to products offered by JN Bank, starting with regular savings accounts, in any currency, and unsecured loans. Soon after launch, credit card applications will be accommodated. For those customers who prefer a non-digital alternative, some of the benefits of the Passport can be accessed by applying for a ONE JN Passport card, which can also be pinned and used as a debit card.
Claudine Allen, ONE JN programme director, underscored that by creating a profile in the ONE JN Passport app or activating the ONE JN Passport card, JN customers will no longer need to provide their information to the named JN member companies.
JN teams are collaborating to prepare JN employees and JN Bank branches for the rollout.
