Fewer banks in Costa Rica: how does it affect competition and customers?

The number of banks in Costa Rica fell by half in the last 25 years, from 26 in 2000 to 12 in 2025, once Scotiabank’s merger with Davivienda was completed and Prival’s disincription as a banking intermediary became official. What impact does this trend have on competition and access to the system for banking service users? Currently, there are 14 banking entities in operation. During this period, merger processes have prevailed, although there h…

Recent movements in the Costa Rican banking sector, whether the result of interventions by Superintendency General of Financial Institutions (Sugef) or of business decisions, raise the question of whether there are many financial institutions in the country. As published by El Financiero, three financial institutions (Prival, Coopelecheros and Coopeamistad) requested the cessation of operations, Scotiabank is in the process of being sold to anot…