State-owned Banco Nacional (BN), the largest commercial bank in Costa Rica and one of the biggest in Central America with over $7 billion in assets, is launching a spot bitcoin exchange-traded fund through its investment management arm, BN Fondos, according to local reports.
This marks the first time that Costa Ricans will have access to any type of crypto investment product through the country’s banking system.
The firm is also launching a S&P 500 ETF alongside the bitcoin vehicle. The minimum investment amount for each fund is $100. Investments will be taken in U.S. dollars instead of Costa Rican colones.
“[Costa Rican] regulation doesn’t permit investments in things that aren’t investment vehicles, and bitcoin isn’t considered an investment vehicle from a regulatory perspective, but the ETF is,” said Pablo Montes de Oca, general manager at BN Fondos.
Banco Nacional serves over 2.1 million customers in Costa Rica — more…
