QCOSTARICA – The retail giant in Costa Rica, Walmart, reported its entry into the market for sending or receiving remittances in Costa Rica, through its Money Center kiosks located in its supermarkets.
According to the multinational, the Money Centers operate in its 14 Walmart stores, 38 Masxmenos, 5 Maxi Palí, and 4 Palí, strategically located across the seven provinces.
The retailer said it anticipates that this number of service kiosks could grow in the second half of the year, as options are evaluated in rural areas and high population density points of sale.
Up the end of May of this year, sending and receiving money to and from Costa Rica at the Walmart chain of supermarkets was handled by Airpak, the exclusive representative of Western Union in Costa Rica.
That changed last month, with the introduction of Money Center. “This change seeks to improve the offer of services at the Money Center,” explained Mariela Pacheco, Deputy Manager of Corporate Affairs at Walmart.
She added that the agreement with Airpak has been in place since 2018 and that the number of service positions is now being changed, through Walmart’s own kiosks.
Anywhere in the world
In a statement on Tuesday, July 13, Walmart explained that those who want to send remittances through the Money Center can do so anywhere in the world.
It can be done without a minimum amount and a maximum of US$3,000. The receipt of currency will be in cash, in colones (the transfer is made in U.S. dollars and the client pays in colones).
Receiving money will be in colones and available at any of the 61 Money Centers in the country, with ID (passport or cedula) and transaction number.
Pacheco explained that these services are part of the chain’s strategy to offer customers a comprehensive value proposition, in which they can find everything they need in one place.
“As part of our growth and continuous improvement processes, as of May, we incorporate the remittance service available to all customers who are registered with Western Union (Airpak),” added the assistant manager.
The Walmart statement details that the Money Center kiosks offer services such as payments of public services (water, electricity and telephone), credit cards, bank loans, cable and Internet subscriptions, security, tolls, as well as payments to the Caja Costarricense de Seguro Social (CCSS), Ministry of Finance and Marchamo.
All the above was previously handled under the Servimas brand, which was developed by the Masxmenos stores prior to Walmart’s purchase.
