Methods of Payment
The following methods of payment are the most common:
- Cash (since most Dominican companies maintain dollar accounts abroad) by electronic/wire transfers.
- Supplier credit (once a trading relationship has been established).
- Documentary letters of credit including stand-by letters of credit.
- Documentary collections through the banking system.
- Commercial credit cards, however, it is recommended that U.S. firms accept these credit cards with caution because of the possibility of fraud.
The following local firms perform credit checks on Dominican companies:
TRANSUNION
Address: Ave. Abraham Lincoln No. 1019
3rd Floor, Ens. Piantini
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
Tel: (809) 227-1888 or (809) 200-2930 Option 1
Work Hours from Monday to Friday: 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. DR Time
E-mail: [email protected]
DATA-CREDITO
Address: C. Gaspar Polanco No. 314
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
Tel: (809) 533-4419
Fax: (809) 532-5178
Email: [email protected] or [email protected]
For more information about the methods of payment or other trade finance options, please read the Trade Finance Guide.
Banking Systems
The Central Bank of the Dominican Republic implements monetary policy and issues the national currency (Dominican pesos, commonly abbreviated as “RD$”). The Central Bank also manages external payments.
Commercial banks represent one of the principal sources for private sector financing. Most requested loans are short and medium-term, ranging from 30 to 90 days for working capital or trade financing and from one, three, or five years at the most for capital expenses. Working capital fixed-term loans require that the borrower make either periodic payments of principal and interest or a single principal balloon payment of the entire outstanding balance at maturity. These loans are reviewed on a case-by-case basis. Financing for construction or tourism projects may have longer terms typically from 7 to 10 years or more in a few cases.
Indicative current interest rates for loans in local currency are as follows:
- In RD$ the preferential rates range between 8.5 and 18%..
- Non-preferential rates can go as high as 23-26% for loans denominated in RD$.
- Interest rates for the commercial/corporate sector are revised usually every 6 or 12 months.
Local commercial banks offer almost the same services that a U.S. bank offers to its clients, with the exception that there are no local checking accounts in U.S. dollars, and instead, local banks offer savings accounts in U.S. dollars.
Foreign Exchange Controls
The Monetary Board sets monetary policy and oversees Central Bank operations. It also sets banking and financial norms through resolutions.
All foreign exchange transactions operate in the private market where all sectors of the Dominican economy are free to buy and sell foreign exchange through commercial banks and exchange houses (casas de cambio). The currency has a floating exchange rate which is currently around RD$56.70 per US$1.00.
U.S. Banks & Local Correspondent Banks
The only full-service U.S. commercial bank in the Dominican Republic is:
Citibank, N.A.
Santo Domingo Address: Ave. Winston Churchill Esq. Ave. Andres Jose Aybar
Torre Citibank, Acropolis Center – 24th Floor, Ens. Piantini
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
Tel: (809) 473-2404
Fax: (809) 955-2657
Santiago Address: Plaza Jorge II, local A1, Ave. Bartolomé Colón 14
Santiago De Los Caballeros, Dominican Republic
Tel: (809) 241-9964
Most local banks have correspondent banking relationships in the U.S.
For additional information, visit the U.S. Department of State Investment Climate Statements website.
