NCB Is Lending Again — But Getting a Loan May Be Different

NCB Jamaica’s new CEO says its growth in its mortgages and auto-loans are moving back towards pre-pandemic levels.

NCB Jamaica CEO Sheree Martin recently confirmed on Taking Stock that the bank slowed parts of its lending operation while it reviewed how it assessed risk. But she pushed back on the idea that NCB had stopped lending across the board.

SHEREE MARTIN: “It wasn’t a wholesale freeze. It had to do primarily with certain patterns and trends we were observing around asset quality and deterioration in certain segments.”

Martin said NCB reviewed its credit models after problems emerged in specific products and customer groups. The bank was particularly concerned about smaller unsecured consumer loans, where she said pricing did not always reflect the level of risk.

Hurricane-related disruption also affected employment and income in parts of the country. NCB therefore pulled back on some pre-approved loan offers while it reassessed borrowers’ ability to repay.

The bank has now recalibrated its models, tightened some requirements and adjusted pricing. Martin said demand for loans never disappeared and the pace of lending has resumed, although she wants growth to move faster.

That recovery is most visible in mortgages and auto loans:

Sheree Martin: the growth we’re seeing year-over-year in those products has been phenomenal and and more in keeping with what we’re accustomed to seeing um pre covid

For borrowers, that means NCB is lending again, but approval may depend on more information, stricter qualification standards and interest rates that better reflect the bank’s assessment of risk.

So NCB’s lending engine is running again, but it has been retuned. The bank is chasing growth while trying to avoid the deterioration in loan quality that caused it to slow down in the first place.

NCB stock is up 87% since the start of the year, closing at J$68.90 on September 22, 2026.

And that’s the bottom line.

Have you found it easier or harder to get an NCB loan recently?