Propuesta metodológica de ajuste del monto de capital mínimo de operación para la banca privada y empresas financieras no bancarias

Abstract

This paper proposes a methodology to review and establish the minimum operating capital requirements for private banks and non-bank financial institutions in Costa Rica, in accordance with Article 151 of the Organic Law of the National Banking System. The analysis concludes that the minimum capital level in force for private banks in 2025, amounting to ₡17.121 million, is relatively high compared to that of countries belonging to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The proposed methodology is based on an econometric approach using linear regression with variable selection based on the Akaike Information Criterion (AIC) with a correction for small sample sizes. To implement this, a database is constructed using data from OECD countries on variables that reflect their economic conditions and the characteristics of their financial systems. The results suggest that the expected minimum capital for Costa Rica should be around ₡12.765 million, implying that the current level is nearly 25% above those estimated in this paper. Moreover, the collected evidence indicates that most OECD countries do not apply automatic or recurrent adjustments to the minimum capital requirement.