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Jamaica finds itself at a crossroads as the island's future identity within the financial community is examined, and possibly redefined. A concerted push by government bodies hopes to establish Jamaica as a competitor to offshore service providers in the region like the Cayman and British Virgin Islands, potentially fighting growing unemployment in the country and broadening its overall economic base....

Jamaica finds itself at a crossroads as the island's future identity within the financial community is examined, and possibly redefined. A concerted push by government bodies hopes to establish Jamaica as a competitor to offshore service providers in the region like the Cayman and British Virgin Islands, potentially fighting growing unemployment in the country and broadening its overall economic base. The recent discovery of several multi-million dollar Ponzi schemes operating in Jamaica only hinders the island's reputation within the financial community.

While much of the world has been steadily impacted by negative economic trends throughout the year, Jamaica is still realising the extent of secondary damage to traditionally active sectors like commodities and real estate. The suspended activity of leading aluminium producers Windalco and Alumina Partners of Jamaica is a significant blow to one of the island's leading manufacturing sectors. The 17% reduction in remittances sent to Jamaica over the last six months provides another sobering detail for the island's foreseeable economic future. "We're still running on the momentum of last year," says one partner. "Things are going to get much tighter, and commercial services are going to get harder."

In an effort to combat the worsening economy, the Jamaican government has strengthened efforts toward developing the island's venture capital community. The proposed pool of funds has been estimated as high as $4 billion, and has seen commitments from public and private sources like the National Investment Fund, Pan Caribbean Merchants Banks, the Micro Investment Development Agency, and Exim Bank Jamaica. The fund will focus on developing the international reach and capabilities of Jamaica's small and medium-sized businesses.

But as regional financial hubs simultaneously report decreased activity due to the financial downturn, Jamaica hopes to capitalise on this as it looks to recast itself as a competitor in international finance work. The proposed establishment of Jamaica as an offshore service provider already has lawyers here talking about raising their international profiles. With this in mind, establishing strategic relationships with onshore firms leads the agenda for Jamaica's legal community. While international competition may intensify due to the contracting domestic market, the relatively small number of firms in the jurisdiction capable of such work makes this less than a pressing concern for most lawyers.