NCB auctioning 110 repo vehicles worth $437m

National Commercial Bank Jamaica (NCB), the nation’s largest bank, is auctioning off 110 repossessed vehicles, ranging from an $18.4-million 2022 Porsche Cayenne to a $500,000 2016 Nissan AD wagon.

The combined asking value of the vehicles on offer is $437.3 million, underscoring both the scale of auto lending and the repayment pressures facing Jamaican borrowers. The auction closes on Wednesday. The Financial Gleaner did not receive responses to queries sent to NCB by news time.

An analysis of the bank’s repossession listing, dated April 9, shows BMW accounting for the largest share of value at $83 million, followed by Honda at $50.9 million and Kia at $47.7 million. Mercedes-Benz, Toyota, Audi and Hyundai also feature, with late-model SUVs and crossovers dominating the upper end of the price range.

The repossessed vehicles span model years 2012 to 2024, with the bulk manufactured between 2015 and 2023. Six 2024-model vehicles are included – among them a Great Wall Haval H6, two Honda BRVs, a Hyundai Tucson and two Kia models – suggesting stress among relatively recent borrowers rather than legacy loan portfolios.

Cost-of-living pressures, including rising food, utility and housing costs, continue to strain household cash flows. The BOJ’s latest Macroprudential Policy report, to September 2025, indicates that for every $1 in assets held by households, there is roughly $0.53 in liabilities.

Across the entire banking sector, non-performing loans (NPLs) – those unserviced for 90 days or more – reached $45.3 billion to January 2026, up 20 per cent year-on-year. Consumer loans, which include auto financing, credit cards and related products, account for two-thirds of that figure, according to Bank of Jamaica (BOJ) data.

The deterioration of delinquent loans – from past-due to non-performing – can trigger repossession of the vehicle, with any shortfall between the sale proceeds and the outstanding loan balance written off as bad debt.

Since COVID-19, the BOJ’s policy rate rose 14-fold, from 0.5 per cent to 7.0 per cent, before easing to its current 5.5 per cent. Many borrowers remain locked into loans contracted at higher rates, prolonging debt-servicing pressure on households.

“NPL ratios are projected to rise over the short term, as economic and social dislocation stemming from the impact of Hurricane Melissa is expected to constrain borrowers’ repayment capacity, particularly among local individuals and businesses,” the BOJ stated in its 2025 annual report released last week.

The BOJ added that under adverse scenarios, NPLs could potentially reach levels twice their current magnitude, but are projected to remain materially below the bank’s benchmark threshold of 10 per cent of total loans.

The repossessed vehicles can be viewed at Nihon Trucking on Constant Spring Road, Kingston.

carolyn.guniss@gleanerjm.com