The name, logo, slogan, and image design for the Bank of Jamaica’s CBDC is now finalized, and Jamaica’s central bank digital currency (CBDC) now has a name.
The Bank of Jamaica held a public competition for the CBDC’s complete branding. Ms. Ashley Payne, who won the reward of 600K Jamaican dollars – or about $3840 – for her entries plus an additional 50 Jamaican Dollars in Jam-Dex, offered the name Jam-Dex, which is a short form of Jamaica Digital Exchange, and the tagline “No cash, no problem!”
The new CBDC’s tagline, according to their Central Bank, is based on a famous proverb about being positive in the face of hardship. The D in the name, for its part, has a bar pattern similar to that of the dollar symbol in the United States.
In terms of the name, the judges agreed that they needed something that is readily and preferably quickly recognized as distinctly Jamaican, relates to the Jamaican brand, and evokes the Jamaican spirit. There are few words, phrases, or expressions that are more distinctively Jamaican than JAMAICA.
The name has to represent not just money but digital money as a supplementary element in completing the problem. The full name, Jamaica Digital Exchange, took care of that, and the visual reinforcement of dollar signs running through the ‘D’ in ‘DEX’ completed the look.
Jamaica’s idea behind the logo
The Jamaican bank was recognized for not utilizing common logos, and it was a proud heritage that they wanted to keep up.
The CBDC’s emblem is based on the ackee, the country’s national fruit and an essential part of the country’s indigenous culture.
All of these factors were employed by the Bank of Jamaica to identify the individuals with its new currency. They also stated in an official statement that they aimed to provide a visually unique and immediately identifiable image. “We sought something that matched the authentic ‘Jamaican-nes’ of the name and tagline while being simultaneously simple and distinctively bold as an easily recognizable visual element.”
Deploying CBDC’s one by one
In terms of financial innovation, this move places Jamaica in a unique position among Caribbean countries. Only the Bahamas and the Central Bank of the Eastern Caribbean have deployed CBDCs thus far.
The Sand Dollar, the region’s first CBDC, was released in the Bahamas in October 2020, while Dcash was issued by the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank in March 2021.
With the evolving adoption of digital currencies, countries are jumping on the bandwagon to release their own digital currency. It is highly mandatory because those who don’t will be left out.