Payments/CR
Costa Rica
ISO CR · 3 schemes
Summary
- SINPE Movil 3M users, 76%+ adoption
- SQR PAGOS QR code expansion
- 506M transactions 2023 (84x growth from 2019)
- 4th globally in transactions per capita
- BIS recognition December 2024
Banking landscape
Central Bank
- Name: Banco Central de Costa Rica (BCCR)
- Website: https://www.bccr.fi.cr/
- Role: SINPE system operation
Major Banks (2024)
| Rank | Bank Name | Type | Digital Platform |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Banco Nacional | State | BN Movil |
| 2 | Banco de Costa Rica | State | BCR App |
| 3 | BAC Credomatic | Regional | BAC App |
| 4 | Banco Popular | State | Popular App |
| 5 | Scotiabank CR | International | Scotia Mobile |
Market Structure
- SINPE Movil: 3M users, 4M accounts
- 76%+: Population 15+ using system
- 90%: Bank account penetration (2024)
- BCCR operated: Central bank system
Payment infrastructure
National Payment Systems
| System | Operator | Type | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| SINPE Movil | BCCR | Fast payment | 3M users |
| SINPE | BCCR | Interbank | Active |
| SINPE-TP | BCCR | Transport | 2020 |
| SQR PAGOS | Various | QR | Active |
SINPE Movil Performance
- Launched 2015
- 506 million payments (2023)
- 6 million SINPE Movil payments (2019)
- 84x growth in 4 years
- 0.5% GDP cost savings annually
Global Ranking
- 4th globally in transactions per capita
- Behind Thailand PromptPay, Brazil Pix, Sweden Swish
- BIS Paper December 2024 recognition
- Financial inclusion driver
QR code standards
SQR PAGOS
| Attribute | Value |
|---|---|
| Operator | BCCR expansion |
| Feature | Scan to pay |
| Integration | SINPE Movil |
| Status | Active |
QR Payment Features
- Scan business QR code
- Direct to account payment
- No account/phone number needed
- Error elimination
- Immediate processing
Request to Pay (RTP)
- Under exploration
- Invoice and bill payments
- Recurring payments
- Subscriptions
- B2B embedded payments
Mobile payment apps
| App | Provider | QR | Features |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bank Apps | Various | Yes | SINPE Movil |
| SQR PAGOS | Service | Yes | QR payments |
| SINPE-TP | BCCR | Yes | Transport |
SINPE Movil Features
- Phone number as alias
- Peer-to-peer transfers
- QR code expansion
- Instant settlement
- All banks integrated
SINPE-TP (Transport)
- Launched 2020
- 6 months pilot with INCOFER
- Public transport payments
- Open loop contactless
- QR code support
Schemes
| Scheme | Type | Symbology | Adoption | Technical standard |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SINPE Movil | Fast payment | Phone | 3M users | sinpe-movil |
| SQR PAGOS | QR Code | Scan | Active | sqr-pagos |
| SINPE-TP | Transport QR | BCCR | 2020 | — |
Sources
- BCCR - SINPE Movil
- TransFi - Costa Rica Payments
- Fintech News - SINPE Movil
- BIS - Costa Rica SINPE Movil
- Antit.io - Digital Payments
- Q Costa Rica - SINPE Movil