Boosting access to credit and ensuring financial inclusion for all in Costa Rica
Having access to credit is essential for households to address the volatility of their
personal finances over time and for firms to fund their investments. Accessing financial
services at affordable cost on the other hand, is crucial to ensure financial security
of all economic units. Despite recent improvements, there are still large financial
inclusion disparities in Costa Rica, notably across regions, by gender, and size of
firms. This paper discusses policy reforms that would reduce these disparities. Some
of the key policy priorities are to improve transparency by strengthening the credit
registry and allocating the development banking credit more effectively. Enhancing
financial literacy could help avoid excessive consumer indebtedness. Technological
innovation would also help Costa Rica: granting FinTech start-ups direct and full
access to the state-of-the-art electronic payments system would increase competition,
reduce transactions costs and ensure financial inclusion for all.
Published on October 08, 2020
In series:OECD Economics Department Working Papersview more titles