KINGSTON, June 2nd, 2020: – The Development Bank of Jamaica, through its Jamaica Venture Capital Programme (JVCAPITAL), in collaboration with the Caribbean Alternative Investment Association (CARAIA), will host its first in a series of webinars titled Building the Economy: with funding through Alternative Investments, on Tuesday, June 9 at 11:00 to 12 noon. The series will focus on exploring the Alternative Investments asset class as a financing tool to grow businesses and the Jamaican economy.
The first topic is ENTREPRENEURS: Why you may need Equity Financing now and how to get it. Its panellists will be Christopher Williams, Chairman of the CARAIA, Sandra Glasgow, Managing Director, Co-Founder & Manager, FirstAngelsJA, and Leo Williams, Chief Executive Officer, SEAF Caribbean SME Fund. Audrey Richards, Project Coordinator, JVCAPITAL, will moderate the session.
Milverton Reynolds, Managing Director, DBJ states, “Having launched CARAIA in late 2019, we believe the time is opportune to start this discussion. JVCAPITAL, through funding from IDB Lab, has been at the forefront of the development of the ecosystem for private capital financing, in Jamaica, through private equity, venture capital, mezzanine and private credit funds”
Financing through these alternative sources provides businesses with more “patient” and flexible sources of funding, which are tailored to the needs of businesses at the different stages of their lifecycle.
“We, at the DBJ, are delighted and honoured to bring to Jamaica and the Caribbean this series,” says Mrs. Richards. “At a time when businesses will be seeking new ways to finance their recovery and expansion, there is a greater need to understand how these asset classes can work for them”.
The webinar will be videotaped at the offices of the Development Bank of Jamaica and will observe Government of Jamaica (GOJ)’s physical distancing protocols. The event will be live streamed via the JVCAPITAL Social Media Pages (Facebook, Instagram, YouTube).
There will be 6 episodes in the series - over the June to July period – with topics addressing each asset class under alternative investments.
Christopher Williams, Chairman of CARAIA states, “Over these past two months, and since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Jamaican economy has taken a major hit. But we are not alone as others, in the Caribbean and across the globe, have been similarly impacted. We are using these one-hour webinars to inform and educate our audiences including, but not limited to, investors, project owners, entrepreneurs and the SME sector, that alternative investment funding may provide viable and attractive financing tools for their businesses and for stimulating economic growth. We want to encourage everyone to log on and participate in the webinars.”