NCB Financial’s asset tax burden erodes chairman’s debt payments
Published:Sunday | February 15, 2026 | 12:58 PM
Michael Lee-Chin broke his silence on recent bond matters on Friday, telling NCB Financial Group shareholders that the asset tax has diverted US$100 million from his investment company that otherwise could have funded debt payment.
Lee-Chin traced repayment at AIC Barbados – NCB Financial’s controlling shareholder – directly to cumulative asset tax bills that reached US$194 million since 2012. Lee-Chin, the chairman of NCB Financial, also controls AIC Barbados. His remarks at the bank’s annual meeting marked the first time he publicly linked the asset levy to obligations at AIC, which holds 52 per cent of Jamaica’s largest financial institution.
“Would you like to take a 41 per cent cut in salary?” Lee-Chin asked shareholders, describing how the tax slashed potential dividends. “That pensioner got a 41% cut in income last year, and at the other extreme is the controlling shareholder, who you may not have any empathy for, but he’s still a nice guy.”
The asset tax, levied annually on Jamaican financial institutions’ balance sheets, cost NCB Financial J$2.7 billion (US$17 million) in the December 2025 quarter—eroding earnings and dividend capacity. Lee-Chin calculated that over 12 years, his 52 per cent stake absorbed roughly US$100 million in forgone distributions attributable to the levy.
“We all know that the most advertised number in Jamaica is US$94 million,” Lee-Chin said, referencing the sum AIC paid bondholders in January to regularise debt linked to his offshore investments. “Now you can see the effect of asset tax.”
NCB Financial omitted its first-quarter dividend last year, paying three subsequent instalments of $0.50 per share for total annual distributions of $1.50. Without the asset tax, Lee-Chin said, the payout would have reached $2.55 – representing the 40 per cent reduction he cited.
The bank reported first-quarter net profit of $5.1 billion between October and December, down 1.0 per cent year-over-year, with Hurricane Melissa and the $2.7 billion asset-tax charge among factors pressuring results. Lee-Chin vowed to continue advocating for tax reform.
“I will not stop talking about it until it is resolved,” he told the meeting.
Hurricane Melissa, which struck Jamaica in October, drove the group’s insurance segment to report property-and-casualty insurance claims of “US$161 million”, partially offset by “US$148 million” in reinsurance recoveries, according to Robert Almeida, group CEO in the financial results.
“While the first quarter presented a more challenging earnings environment, our performance demonstrated the underlying resilience of our business,” stated Almeida. “The group maintained its strong balance sheet, disciplined cost management, and sound capital and liquidity positions.”
The bank, on February 12, approved a dividend of $0.50 payable on March 16.