DIASPORA | From Yaad to the Beltway: VM Group Takes Its Financial Link Up to the DMV

One of Jamaica's oldest financial institutions is bringing homeownership, investment and wealth-building advice directly to Jamaicans in Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia on October 31.

MONTEGO BAY, Jamaica, OCTOBER 22, 2026 | Calvin G. Brown | Business | WiredJa — For thousands of Jamaicans living along the Washington–Baltimore corridor, “home” is often two places at once: the city where they work, raise children and pay rent, and the island where they still dream of owning a piece of land. VM Group is betting that the distance between those two addresses can be shortened with the right financial conversation.

The 148-year-old financial mutual is taking its Yaad & Beyond financial empowerment series to the Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia (DMV) region, where it will stage The VM Group Financial Link Up – DMV Edition on Saturday, October 31, from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the DoubleTree by Hilton in Silver Spring, Maryland. The event is being held with the support of the Embassy of Jamaica in Washington, D.C.

A deliberate second stop

The DMV session follows the inaugural Financial Link Up in Atlanta, Georgia, and is the latest move in a diaspora push VM Group has been sharpening all year.

In February, the group's appointment of Leighton Smith — previously chief executive of VM Finance in the United Kingdom — as Group Chief Diaspora Markets Officer was reported by the Jamaica Observer as lifting diaspora engagement into a group-wide growth strategy.

The Yaad & Beyond campaign itself was rolled out in September, with the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom as its primary markets.

Group President and Chief Executive Officer Courtney Campbell, who is leading the US leg of the series, framed the outreach as a matter of identity as much as business.

“Meaningful engagement with the Diaspora remains central to VM Group's vision of building stronger connections between Jamaicans at home and abroad.” — Courtney Campbell, Group President & CEO

Campbell said the series opens space for conversations on homeownership, investing, entrepreneurship and wealth creation, adding that as the group deepens its presence in key diaspora markets, “our focus remains on empowering our members and clients at every stage of their financial journey.”

Who will be in the room

Billed as an interactive engagement rather than a lecture, the Link Up is aimed at a broad cross-section of the community: entrepreneurs, professionals, business owners, community leaders, prospective homeowners and investors.

Campbell will sit on a panel alongside Smith; Michael Howard, Chief Executive Officer of VM Property Services; Dr Karrian Hepburn Malcolm, Vice President of Wealth Distribution and Revenue Strategy at VM Wealth Management; and Kaysia Vaughan, Group Chief Customer and Brand Officer.

The agenda is organised around three pillars: real estate and homeownership; wealth building and investing; and entrepreneurship and business growth.

Smith said the region's sizeable Jamaican community and its strong ties to the island made it a natural next destination. “The DMV region is home to a vibrant Jamaican community with deep connections to Jamaica,” he said.

“Through our Yaad & Beyond initiative, we are bringing our financial specialists closer to the Diaspora, creating opportunities for meaningful conversations, practical financial guidance, and informed decisions that support long-term financial security and generational wealth creation.”

Why the diaspora matters — on both sides of the ledger

The courtship makes sense. Remittances remain one of Jamaica's largest sources of foreign exchange, and overseas Jamaicans have long been among the most dependable buyers of property back home. That relationship carries added weight this year, as families across western Jamaica continue to rebuild after Hurricane Melissa, very often with money sent from abroad.

VM can also claim some pedigree. Founded in 1878 as the Victoria Mutual Building Society, the group says it was the first Jamaican financial institution to open overseas representative offices, beginning in the United Kingdom in the early 1980s.

Still, outreach of this kind is good business as well as good citizenship, and VM is not alone in it. Jamaica's major financial houses have courted the same constituency for decades, and the diaspora dollar is a fiercely contested prize.

For attendees, the real value of a session like this lies in asking pointed questions — about fees, foreign-exchange exposure, the practicalities of managing property more than 2,000 kilometres away, and how products stack up across institutions. A well-informed diaspora investor is good for the investor, and ultimately good for Jamaica.

Bridging home and away

The Embassy's backing ties the event to a wider national interest in connecting Jamaicans overseas with opportunities in their homeland. Through the series, VM Group says it intends to widen access to financial guidance for Jamaicans abroad as they pursue homeownership, grow businesses, invest and build generational wealth.

For the Jamaican in Silver Spring, Bowie or Northern Virginia weighing a house in Hanover or a small business in Half-Way-Tree, October 31 offers a rare chance to put those questions directly to the people holding the keys.

Registration for the event is available at caribtix.com/vmdmv.

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