Costa Rica moves to free-floating currency

Costa Rica announced that it would remove the country’s nine-year-old currency band system in favor of a floating exchange against the U.S. dollar, according to a statement from the Central Bank (BCCR) Saturday.

The BCCR had not taken any measures to adjust the value of the colón, Costa Rica’s currency, outside the band since Dec. 12, 2013, arguing that the currency had been in a “de facto” float since then.

On Oct. 17, 2006, the BCCR announced that it would implement the currency band, which established a floor and ceiling price between which the colón could float before the Central Bank would take steps to adjust its value. The band system was implemented as a way to gradually move the country from a fixed exchange to a floating one.

The colón has depreciated roughly 8 percent against the U.S. dollar since February 2014, selling at 543 on Saturday, according to Monex. The BCCR said that Costa Rica had more than $7.3 billion in reserves.