Banco Nacional and Banco
de Costa Rica To Join
Forces
The 2 million customers
of the state banks -
Banco Nacional (BN) and
Banco de costa Rica (BCR)
can now access the
combined 450 branches
and 500 ATM's, choosing
the closest to their
work of home, as the BN
and BCR integrate their
services.
The Banco Nacional, the
Banco de Costa Rica and
the Crédito Agrícola (Bancrédito)
will beginning today
share their technology
platform in providing
their customers
services.
The fusion does not mean
a merger of the banks.
What the change means is
that a cheque written on
a Banco Nacional account
can now be cashed at a
Banco de Costa Rica
branch, and vice versa,
without having the need
to got to the issuing
bank or depositing the
instrument and waiting
for the clearing period
of days.
Once the fusion of the
banking operations are
complete, they will
represent 42% of
national credit market
with some 2 million
customers and 500
branches throughout the
country.
The benefit to users is
also the interchange of
their ATM's, where up to
yesterday BN customers
could not access BCR
ATM's and vice versa,
unlike the private banks
whose ATM's have been
inter connected by way
of ATH for some time.
The BCR and Bancredito
were the first to share
their platform,
integrating a number of
back end services since
2005. However, now that
the BN and BCR have
joined forces, customers
of state banks have full
options.
The fusion does not mean
the banks have merged.
All that is being shared
is the back end services
in an attempt to cut
costs of duplicating
similar services by each
individual bank.
Officials of both state
banks will meet today at
the Hotel Corobici,
where in a press
conference, will sign
the agreement and make
the details public. |
