QCOSTARICA – The president of the Central Bank of Costa Rica (Banco Central de Costa Rica – BCCR), Olivier Castro considers it a priority goal to de-dollarize the economy.
Castro this week at a press conference expressed concern about the dollarization of credit of those who receive their income in colones, as this creates instability in payment.
Castro said there are efforts that should be implemented to strengthen the colon. At present, the Central Bank has no legal tools to control transactions in dollars and is exposed to foreign exchange risks.
Castro said BCCR is working on a bill aimed at having the tools to control the movements in dollars in the country, a situation that already occurring in the past but it did not push it through.
This initiative is development and is scheduled for completion within three months. The Ministry of Finance (Ministerio de Hacienda) supports the BCCR proposal.
In a report by La Republica, it says that those looking for a loan this year would get faster approval in colones than in dollars. This is due to the high liquidity of colones, interest rates are dropping and there are no restrictions on the growth of credit in the colon.
In 2016, loans in colones are expected to grow 11%, while only 6.5% in dollars, according to the Central Bank Monetary Plan (Plan Monetario del Banco Central).
In 2015, the Central Bank reports growth of loans in colones was 9.2%, and dollars 4.1%.
