The anxiety of the offshore investors in the Diaspora who invested in Cash Plus Limited in Jamaica will continue for a while longer, as the sanction against the financial institution will continue at least until the end of this month.

Cash Plus, one of the many alternative investment schemes which are becoming a trend in Jamaica, was given a cease and desist order from the Financial Services Commission (FSC) will remain in effect until a hearing scheduled for January 23.

The alternative investment scheme which has sprung up on the island in recent years has remained at the center of controversy as the local banking system has continuously been probing their actions as it pertains to legality. To that end, some of the original institutions, such as David Smith’s Olint, in anticipation of a government clampdown, have sought to put their corporate offices in countries like Turks and Caicos in to avoid legal troubles. Cash Plus, headed by chief executive Carlos Hill, who is yet to secure an overseas base, came under fire from the financial regulatory body after several probes into the company’s practices. The FSC found that the institution was unlicensed and thus should not have been trading in securities as stipulated by the Securities Act. It also said Cash Plus breach a number of sections in the Securities Act and has to be regulated in order to continue its operations.

The FSC had ordered the company late last year, to discontinue its securities trading activities until it acquires the required license. The upcoming hearing will decide on whether Cash Plus must adhere to FSC’s order to continue its financial activities – until then Cash Plus is suspended. When the news first broke that the entity was being probed, hundreds of people were sent scrambling, many in long lines attempting to retrieve their funds before the tenuous investment ‘scheme’ went bust.

Now, while the company waits, many Jamaicans at home and in the Diaspora, who have become dependent on the 10 percent monthly interest on their investment in Cash Plus, are feeling the pinch as they are unable to receive this supplemental income. Since last year, banks in Jamaica had refused to cash checks from the institution, leaving investors, or lenders as they are called in Cash Plus, out in the cold.

But this has sparked major debate in Jamaica, especially among the poorer class, some of whom are for the first time profiting largely from any investment. Cash Plus did not only welcome big investors (or lenders), but leveled the playing field so low-income groups could also benefit – something that seemed like a reprieve for many, especially given the volatile economic climate on the island.

Some critics see this as a “well orchestrated lynching of alternative investment schemes” by the comparatively low-interest paying moneyed banks in order to secure their place at the top of the financial pyramid and keep the low-income classes, as just that – low income.

There is also the argument that banks, which had stopped cashing the Cash Plus checks, were threatened by the company’s practices, as many of their longtime customers had pulled their savings and loaned it to Cash Plus for the high-yielding monthly 10 percent on their investment – racking up an annual accumulative 120 percent on their investment.

Investors of Cash Plus are eagerly waiting for January 23, when they can have some idea about how the legal wrangling between Cash Plus and the FSC will play out.