Q COSTA RICA — Money laundering cases and the amounts linked to this illicit activity continue to rise in Costa Rica, posing a threat that goes beyond the criminal sphere. These illegal funds increasingly infiltrate the formal economy, distorting markets, undermining fair competition, and raising risks for businesses and the financial system.
In the first half of 2026 alone, the Organismo de Investigación Judicial’s (OIJ) Anti-Money Laundering Section reported confiscations that nearly doubled the total seized throughout 2024.
While the OIJ confiscated about ¢3.35 billion colones during all of 2024 in investigations related to money laundering, by mid-2026, authorities had already seized over ¢6.5 billion colones.
The situation becomes even more alarming when including seizures by other agencies such as the Instituto Costarricense de Drogas (ICD) —Costa Rican Drug Institute and the Policía Control de Drogas (PCD) — Drug Control Police.
Behind these figures lies increasingly sophisticated criminal networks capable of channeling illicit resources into seemingly legitimate economic activities through complex webs of businesses, financial institutions, and corporate entities.
A national risk assessment commissioned by the Superintendencia General de Entidades Financieras (SUGEF) — General Superintendency of Financial Entities – warned that some of the money flows entering Costa Rica from abroad may be tied to illegal activities, given the difficulties in tracing their origin. The report also highlighted vulnerabilities that increase the country’s exposure to money laundering.
How Criminal Networks Operate
Criminal groups involved in money laundering—also known as asset legitimization—create elaborate structures to give illegal money, often from drug trafficking, a façade of legality. Rodrigo Monge, acting head of the OIJ’s Anti-Money Laundering Section, explained that these groups often use cash-heavy businesses to gradually mix illicit funds with legitimate revenues.
Technology plays a role too. Criminals exploit the country’s Electronic Payment System (Sinpe Móvil) to move money through multiple transactions, companies, and accounts, finally integrating the funds by purchasing high-value assets that appear legal.
For example, in informal lottery stands where customers place bets via bank transfers or Sinpe Móvil, the business may serve as a front. When it’s time to pay out winnings, the criminals use illicit cash, effectively replacing illegal money with legitimate banked funds and creating a confusing blend that masks the true source.
One of the biggest known cases, dubbed “Caso Fénix,” involved laundering at least US$17 million dollars between 2015 and 2022 through a network of businesses in Pérez Zeledón. The scheme used cattle farms, restaurants, bars, auto repair shops, tire shops, and produce stores to introduce large amounts of cash into the formal economy. These were declared as legitimate commercial income before being moved through bank accounts and shell companies to hide their origin.
Common Money Laundering Schemes in Costa Rica
Among the most common tactics is the use of “testaferros” (front men), individuals who appear as owners of assets or companies but act on behalf of criminals. Some are unaware their identities are being used; others knowingly assist in opening accounts, forming companies, and acquiring property.
There are also so-called “paper companies” that exist only on paper, without real commercial activity, and “front companies” that do operate but are used to mix illicit money with genuine business revenues, creating the illusion of prosperous enterprises.
Other frequently exploited sectors include informal lotteries, vehicle sales (often underpriced with illicit funds covering the difference), motels (where cash income is hard to verify), and increasingly, crypto assets—which present extra challenges due to their traceability issues.
Monge noted that these organizations don’t mind losing part of the illicit money during laundering. If they can legitimize 60% of their funds after losing 40%, they consider it a win.
Economic and Systemic Impact
Money laundering doesn’t just threaten security; it distorts the formal economy. Front companies may operate with artificially low margins or even losses, aiming to legitimize illicit funds rather than make profits. This creates unfair competition against genuine businesses that rely on real income.
Injections of illegal capital can also push up prices in markets like real estate, livestock, and vehicle sales, driven by criminals’ need to place large cash volumes rather than market forces.
At a systemic level, the problem risks damaging Costa Rica’s reputation internationally. Increased flows of untraceable money raise scrutiny from correspondent banks and international bodies like the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). This leads to higher compliance costs for financial institutions and companies, which must strengthen controls and monitoring to avoid becoming unwitting conduits for money laundering.
Why Is Detection So Hard?
Investigating money laundering is complex. Authorities must prove that illicit money exists, identify the crime generating it, and reconstruct how it was made to look legal. Criminals constantly refine their techniques, exploiting new technologies, which forces investigators to keep upgrading their skills.
A Sugef risk assessment flagged difficulties tracing some foreign-origin funds, especially remittances and transfers. Costa Rica receives nearly four times more money through remittances than it sends abroad, complicating efforts to trace origins and detect links to illicit activities.
The high circulation of foreign currency cash also raises red flags, as it might reflect untraceable money flowing into the country.
Remittance companies ranked as the highest-risk sector analyzed, given the challenges in identifying senders, verifying funds’ origins, and spotting suspicious patterns that could signal criminal networks.
Rising Numbers Reflect Growing Challenge
Data from the OIJ shows confiscations linked to money laundering rose sharply: from ¢3.35 billion colones in 2024 to over ¢9 billion in 2025. By mid-2026, seizures already matched the entire 2024 total.
When combined with data from the ICD and other agencies, the scale is staggering. Between January and October 2024, authorities seized ¢57.5 billion linked to illicit activities—a 1,300% increase over 2023.
Reports of suspicious operations detected by financial entities also doubled from 2023 to 2025, indicating intensified monitoring and possibly more illicit activity.
As criminal groups refine their methods, the growing volume of seized funds reflects the huge scale of money laundering in Costa Rica—as well as the mounting pressure on the country to safeguard its economy and financial system from corruption.
This article, originally published in Spanish in El Financiero, has been translated into English, and the content has been curated and refined with the assistance of artificial intelligence tools. Readers are encouraged to consider the original Spanish version for the most authentic representation of the source material.