What Online Gift Jamaica Got for The New Year ?

It begins with the letter A

Author

Ingrid Riley
January 09, 2024

January 09, 2024   |   Read Online

#5

Happy New Year Insiders,

Welcome to another weekly issue of SiliconCaribe Insider, the Caribbean Tech and Business newsletter that pairs perfectly with your morning coffee or your favourite nightcap.

IN THIS WEEK’S ISSUE

  • The Lead Story: The Current State of eCommerce is Jamaica: Two Words: Amazon Delivery

  • Caribbean Tech News Amuse-bouche, Tapas + Bytes 

  • Startup in the Spotlight: RifBid

  • FlashBack: Four Online Shopping Trends for Jamaica in 2011

  • Caribbean Tech Events: Blockchain, Ai, Fintech, Startups

THE LEAD 

What Online Gift Jamaica Got for The New Year. One Word: Amazon Delivery

I don’t know about anyone else but I’ve never gone to Amazon.com, had it detect my Kingston, Jamaica location, ask me if I want to have my stuff delivered to an address there, accept my Jamaican address, then asked me for my Passport or TRN so it can handle customs clearance fees, then when I have my things in my Cart go over the Jamaican Government allowed US$50, it calculates the Jamaican customs rate, when it’s below, there is no customs fee, then add its global delivery charge, accepts my Jamaican bank Visa Debit Card as Payment. Then for delivery, tells me me it will take 2 1/2 weeks then delivers my packages within a week to my door.

That’s how I started to tell my story about when I discovered that Amazon now delivers to your door in Jamaica what it means for consumers and the business of local freight forwarder brands and the value of the Jamaican and Caribbean e-commerce market. I published it on my blog first for timing’s sake.

So read the rest of the newsletter and then read the rest of the blog here

Join us at Crypto Isle on January 22-24, as we reclaim the narrative of crypto in The Bahamas. We'll be joined by several speakers who are pioneering the consumer crypto space, with quality insights on how crypto is evolving far beyond trading and exchanges - with practical use cases for consumers, businesses, and brands.

 

CARIBBEAN TECH NEWS

[ Future of Caribbean Money ]

Fintech, Blockchain, Bitcoin, Defi, Digital Remittances, InsureTech, Crypto

Oasis Reclaiming the Narrative of Crypto in The Bahamas 

Oasis Onchain is a consumer crypto event in Nassau, Bahamas 

The goal of this event is to spotlight innovations around consumer crypto (beyond speculation, trading, and exchanges), and to connect the local crypto ecosystem with pioneering companies, projects, and founders in the consumer crypto sphere. 

We also expect this event to help with the repair and revitalization of the Bahamian crypto ecosystem after the FTX collapse; by not only highlighting local ecosystem builders but by bringing global allies and true builders into our ecosystem.     Notable Confirmed Speakers (will have more by EOW but for now): 

  •     Mark Pereira, Zed Labs 

  •     Tony Olendo, Polygon 

  •     Kimberly Adams, Bankless Ventures 

  •     Binji Pande, Optimism 

  •     Evin Mcmullen, Disco.xyz

  •     Kevin Jones, Edge & Node / The Graph 

  •     Stevie Cline, Vol 1 Ventures 

  •     Tori Cohen, OtterSec 

  •     Ruby Thelot, NYU Prof  

  •     Ameer Carter, BLVKHVND (world championship level esports DAO/brand) 

  •     Andy Bromberg, Eco / Beam Wallet  

  •     Winny.eth, Gossip Protocol (Their new project Chipped has already been published in Vogue and High Snobiety) 

  •    Jesse Pollak, Coinbase (speaking virtually) 

    These speakers are at the forefront of the consumer crypto vertical. There will also be a few activations where attendees will be able to use some of these products firsthand. 

     Sponsored

[ Crypto]

Jamaica Government Drafting Laws to Regulate Virtual Assets To Meet FATF Requirement

Minister of Finance Dr. Nigel Clarke, says the government is moving to begin regulating virtual assets such as cryptocurrencies. This is in keeping with the recommendations of global financial watchdog, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), about Jamaica’s compliance with the anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) regulations. 

Clarke explains that as the technologies surrounding virtual assets advance, so too must Jamaica’s financial regulation. He further stated, “Since Jamaica’s framework has to date not specifically addressed the risk caused by virtual asset providers, Jamaica’s rating was downgraded from compliant to partially compliant.” 

“This is a process that is always ongoing and we have to keep the fabric of our regulation in step with the advancements of the world and new technologies that can allow for the abuse of procedures and laws,” he stated. Dr. Clarke further adds that the Financial Services Commission FSC, the current regulator for this sector, is spearheading the work to develop draft regulations for virtual assets. 

Source: Government Press Release.

The Caribbean Crypto Community had a lot of discussions in various WhatsApp groups. This comment by a One Caribbean Crypto Pioneer popped out at me. “ FATF has become an incredibly powerful entity with the ability to create or broaden legislation without the pesky elections process.

 If you look at the rating systems for compliance and the follow-up reports, countries often enact legislation (more recently re R. 15) in order to jump from a rating of Partially Compliant (PC) to Compliant (C).

Moreover, 6 Caribbean islands have enacted the Virtual Business Act that was created by FATF and handed down to the Eastern Central Caribbean Bank (ECCB) and then handed to their member states.”

We all wait to see Jamaica’s position on this, especially since Jamaica has always been one of the Top 8 Caribbean crypto-user Countries. Jamaicans especially in corporate started being super interested in Crypto, as we at SiliconCaribe hosted a sold-out event which was the first of its kind in Jamaica Understanding Blockchain Technology, Bitcoin, and the Rise of Cryptocurrency

For the Smart and Curious 

[ Ai ]

Florida-based Ai Accelerator accepting Caribbean Startups.

Angela Benton, the American tech pioneer who started America’s first Black Tech Accelerator - NewME, is at it again. She said “This new accelerator blends my previous work with NewME, my learnings from working with AI companies at Fruit Ventures, and my expertise in data and AI at Streamlytics. The truth of the matter is we are at a critical time in technology and AI is changing everything, literally.” Her first cohort just closed, but Caribbean Startups should get ready for the next cohort kicking off on February 2, 2024.   

 

AROUND THE WORLD IN TECH NEWS

  • [ Creator Economy]

    • Here are 30 pitch decks creator startups have used to attract capital in early funding rounds. Read More → insider

    • As X (formerly Twitter) plummets in value, creators increasingly look elsewhere for opportunities. Read More → hellopartner

    • “Kim Kardashian: Hollywood,” the mobile game, is finally shutting down after nearly ten years of popularity and profit. Read More → variety

[ Ai ]

  • Microsoft is adding an AI button to Windows keyboards. In the first update to the Windows keyboard in 30 years. Microsoft partners will start shipping a new Copilot key on a variety of new PCs and laptops. 

  • OpenAI is opening its app store

    ChatGPT is finally opening its version of Apple’s App Store after some delay. Considering how much revenue (and regulatory headaches) the marketplace provides, ChatGPT’s chatbot store could turn the AI firm into a booming, sustainable business… as long as copyright law doesn’t make it obsolete. 

🚀 STARTUP SPOTLIGHT

English, Spanish, French, and Dutch Caribbean tech-driven startups around the world and how they are changing the way we live, work, and play. They are closing early customers, raising their first rounds, and hard at work building products.

[ FundRaising ]

Brief: Rifbid is an AI-powered e-procurement platform connecting government agencies and suppliers. Rifbid is eliminating the tedious search process, and the long pay cycles and allowing for faster responses to government contracts with AI assistance. Rifbid is helping governments accelerate development in their economy and suppliers gain access to millions of dollars in government contracts. 

  • Founders: Keeghan Patrick and Shergaun Roserie  

  • Founded: 2023 

  • Industry: GovTech 

  • Stage: Pre-Seed  

  • Market Status: Pre-launch. Pitch competition winnings $10KUSD, interest from 3 governments.

  • HQ: St Lucia

  • Currently raising: Raising USD 250K 

  • Website: http://RifBid.com

 We’re looking for Caribbean Tech Startups! 

If you are a Caribbean-led tech startup in the Region or around the World and you're looking to connect with opportunities, programs, mentors, and angel investors, submit your project here for visibility. We're on the lookout for the Caribbean's exceptional tech entrepreneurs, change-makers, and builders. Submit here

 

FLASHBACK

This is a flashback article from 13 years ago to show you how Jamaican tech entrepreneurs were thinking ahead of many when it came to the eCommerce ecosystem. 

1. Digital Coupons–Discountsja.com is like Groupon.com for Jamaica. What they do is secure discounts from merchants and make them available to people who sign up to save on their purchases of goods and services across Jamaica. You can Print the voucher, and then present it at the business to get your deal. They are only a few months old and have close to 5,000 users. It’s timely as many people are very money conscious and are wise with how much they spend and everybody loves a deal, a discount. Watch for coupons for your smartphone too. 

  1. Buying groceries online- Online shopping for groceries by Jamaicans who live in Jamaica has been pretty much nonexistent. It was more of an exercise in window shopping on brochure sites, followed by a call or email to place an order. As the e-commerce industry blossoms from the consumer, bank, and business owner angles, expect to see more options for Jamaicans to shop for groceries online and more providers making it an option. Asljamaica.com, called an Online Wholesale Club and launched in December this year, while the name is in our opinion unfortunate, it seems to have a powerful idea in play. 

  1. Setting up Your Online Store–Virtualmalljamaica/Shopvmj.com pioneered online shops for Jamaican businesses a couple of years ago. Now they have 70 online stores that offer Jamaican and global products and services. But with First Caribbean Fire starting the banking industry to offer Visa Debit cards and with more banks jumping on the bandwagon- more Jamaicans will see online shopping as a safe, viable option. This in turn will make selling to Jamaicans online will be viable for business owners. We see that there will not only be more people setting up online shops inside online malls but establishing their own using options such as bigcommerce.com, Facebook online shop options wordpress store themes, and credit card processing. 

  1. Rating and Reviews– Now, whether you’ve had a great experience or not, at a restaurant, or store online and offline, you can not only tell your friends but you can also share it with the world on Jamaican sites like yuhrate.com and roamingdonkey.com. Jamaican consumers have been more exposed and are demanding variety, better prices, and actual consistent customer service. So expect more sites that help to keep Jamaican and Caribbean brands accountable, just in case they haven’t already heard that Customer Service is the new Marketing. 

SiliconCaribe.com Online Shopping Guide Jamaica

 

CARIBBEAN TECH EVENTS 

Kingston Beta

  • Date: Thursday, February 1, 2024  

  • Location: Kingston, Jamaica | AC Hotel Kingston  

  • Theme: eCommerce: Online SHopping Culture + Business Opportunities 

  • Format: Panel. A Startup Pitch Stage. The Best Networking in Tech.  

  • Newsletter: Subscribe to the monthly updates here

Oasis Onchain Summit

  • What: A 3-day summit focused on consumer crypto for global markets

  • Date: January 22nd-24th, 2024

  • Location: Crypto Isle | Nassau Bahamas  

  • Format: Panels, FIresside Chats Plus a Hackathon  

  • Website: https://www.oasisonchain.xyz/

Fintech Islands

  • Date January 24-26th, 2024  

  • Location: Bridgetown, Barbados. |Sam Lord’s Castle Wyndham Resort: Fintech Islands brings together the financial services and technology ecosystem through discussions, collaboration, deal-making and networking  

  • Website: https://www.fintechislands.com/

Get Listed: Want to add your Caribbean Tech Event here: Email us at mailto:[email protected] 

 

CARIBBEAN TECH JOBS

We are going to start posting Caribbean Tech job openings here. Want to get listed, email us for rates: [email protected]

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GOT NEWS?

PS: Got some exclusive and juicy Caribbean Tech News for us? Email: [email protected] or direct to me [email protected] 

Catch you in your inbox, next week! 

Ingrid Riley