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Costa Rica

Costa Rica

Credit cards are widely used in Costa Rica. Exactly 70% of Costa Rican have internet access and a bank account. Costa Rica has advanced in adopting digital and alternative payments. It was one of the first countries in Latin America to adopt contactless payments. Contactless payments supported by VISA, MasterCard and American express. When you come to Costa Rica you have to change euros to USD or CRC. It is common to pay with USD or Costa Rican Colon (CRC).

Total e-commerce revenue 2,3 billion

There are 1 million internet users.

Currency:
Costa Rican Colon

Top banks

Banco de Costa Rica (BCR)

The bank began primarily as a private commercial bank until it was designated a currency issuer and exclusive manager of public revenues in the last decade of the 19th century. After the bank nationalization decree of 1948, Banco de Costa Rica became a financial entity with a major role in the development of the country

Banco Nacional de Costa Rica (BNCR)

Established in 1914, Banco Nacional de Costa Rica is a financial conglomerate wholly owned by the Government and the largest commercial bank of the country in terms of assets and loan portfolio. With over 170 branches across the country and more than 1,200 commercial establishments affiliated to BN Services, BNCR is a key institution to the economic development of Costa Rica.

Banco Popular y de Desarrollo Comunal

The Popular and Community Development Bank is a non-state Public Law institution, with legal status and its own assets, with full administrative and functional autonomy. Its operation will be governed by the rules of Public Law. The bank's fundamental objective will be to provide economic protection and well-being to workers, by promoting savings and satisfying their credit needs. For this purpose, it will seek the economic and social development of workers, for which it may grant credits for urgent needs, as well as for worker participation in job-generating companies that have economic viability. Likewise, it may finance community development programs.

Banco Central de Costa Rica

​The main goal of the Banco Central de Costa Rica is to control inflation, acting jointly with the National Supervisory Council for the Financial System (CONASSIF) to meet its objectives. It is also in charge of promoting the efficiency of the internal and external payments system and maintaining its normal operations, among other duties.

Banco Improsa

Grupo Financiero Improsa started operations in 1986 with Financiera Improsa, which in 1995 was transformed into Banco Improsa. Their business model, unique in the country, is based on offering financial solutions tailored to the needs of their customers with a wide range of products and services.

BANCO LAFISE

Our purpose is to create Solutions without Borders customer at the core of everything we do. As an unrivaled provider of financial solutions Grupo LAFISE delivers integrated financial services that meet our customers’ need. Grupo LAFISE has consolidated itself as the regional financial leader in specialized banking, brokerage firm, investment banking, insurance, agricultural export trade, warehousing, investment and capital funds management services. Today, Grupo Financiero LAFISE’s operations integrate the markets of Central America, the U.S., Mexico, Panama, Dominican Republic, Colombia, and Spain, delivering cutting-edge financial solutions to meet the needs of institutions, companies, and individuals and fostering the development of communities and nations.

Cathay Bank

Cathay Bank was founded in 1998 to break paradigms, showing that business and trade development between Costa Rica and Asian countries was more than a dream. We were founded thanks to the vision of investors, and today we are a strong, solid and emblematic bank, which has coined the phrase "Fast and well done" as a work philosophy, and which has become an ally of small and medium-sized Costa Rican enterprises, by offering them products that cover all their financial needs. Cathay Bank continues to be the only bank in Costa Rica with close connections with the oriental population living in the country; thanks to our personnel at all of our agencies, who are highly fluent in the language and the culture.

Crédito Agrícola

The Crédito Agrícola Group (GCA) is a centuries-old Cooperative Financial Group , made up of Caixa Central - Caixa Central de Crédito Agrícola Mútuo CRL (Caixa Central) and the Caixas de Crédito Agrícola Mútuo , its Associates as well as the auxiliary service companies directly involved in or indirectly, through Caixa Central (Participating Companies), deeply rooted in the economic fabric of the different regions of the country, with a total of 616 branches throughout the mainland national territory and islands. With more than 400,000 Associates and 1,600,000 Customers, GCA is the only nationwide Cooperative Financial Group in which the 69 Credit Institutions that comprise it are Cooperatives, with its entire corporate organization oriented towards sustaining and supporting competitiveness , namely the 68 Caixas de Crédito Agrícola Mútuo , Associates of Caixa Central , true entities that stimulate local economies which, with their autonomy and integration in their respective regions, have in-depth knowledge of the realities of their respective business and economic fabric and the challenges that arise for socio-economic and sustainable development at local level.

Banco Davivienda

Banco Davivienda (Costa Rica) SA (formerly Banco HSBC Costa Rica SA) offers a wide range of products and services, including bank accounts, credit cards, personal loans, investment products, insurance, private banking, payments and cash management, treasury, asset management and brokerage service. In 2012, the Colombian bank Davivienda acquired HSBC's banking and insurance operations in Costa Rica and controls the financial entity through its subsidiary Corporación Davivienda (Costa Rica), SA. As of December 31, 2013, the bank has 28 branches, 118 ATMs and 842 employees.

Top payment methods

Littlepay

Littlepay is a national, interoperable payment method that is mostly used in public transportation. While entering the metro or a train station you will see people that have got a machine to charge you contactless for a ride. Just place your card and you will be able to follow your destination.

SafetyPay is a real-time global payment solution that enables customers to securely make online purchases from merchants worldwide and pay online directly through their local bank account in the currency of choice.

Efectivo

Efectivo is a cash payment made via bank bill, an alternative cash based payment method for merchants in Latin America

Concluding remarks

Cash

Physical currency is still widely used in Costa Rica, and cash is commonly accepted in most stores and businesses.

Credit and debit cards

Visa, Mastercard, and American Express are widely accepted credit and debit cards in Costa Rica. However, not all businesses accept cards and some may have a minimum purchase amount for card transactions.

Mobile payments

Mobile payments are becoming increasingly popular in Costa Rica, with apps like Paypal, Xoom, and MercadoPago allowing users to pay for goods and services using their smartphones.

Cryptocurrency

While not as widely used as other payment methods, cryptocurrency is becoming an increasingly popular way to pay for goods and services in Costa Rica, particularly Bitcoin.

Debit card

Debit card usage is common in Costa Rica, as they are connected to a bank account, and it is widely used to withdraw cash from ATMs.

For more information contact us: info@processing.news

About us

Processing News is an Online Wikipedia of the payment world. We collect and publish information about payment habits in different countries, describing methods that payers use in their daily life. 


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