The regime of Daniel Ortega, through a package of anti-money laundering law reforms approved yesterday by the National Assembly, ordered the regulation of procedures for the transmission and retention of information that concerned entities—in this case, financial institutions—must follow to obtain and record their customers’ use of credit and debit cards. This requirement already existed, but will now be subject to more detailed regulation.
The inclusion of this measure by the Ortega regime has sparked controversy on social media, as the government has frequently been accused of manipulating international regulatory standards to target political opponents. However, financial institutions typically retain customer financial information for a specified period, and agencies such as the Financial Analysis Unit (UAF) or other supervisory bodies can access that data through anti-money laundering regulations. The dictatorship has gradually expanded those regulations to gain easier access to such information.
A source with expertise in Nicaragua’s financial system told LA PRENSA: “Banks have always been required to retain documentation and records of their clients’ financial operations, including transactions carried out with credit and debit cards.”
The specialist explained that when the Financial Analysis Unit (UAF) Law and the Anti-Money Laundering Law were approved in 2019, authorities “significantly expanded their powers to collect, analyze, and report financial information,” including card transactions.
“Subsequently, the Superintendency of Banks and Other Financial Institutions (SIBOIF) and the UAF issued regulations and requirements obligating banks, card issuers, money transfer companies, and other reporting entities to identify their customers, maintain detailed transaction records, and provide information when requested by competent authorities,” the expert said.
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No Such Authority Before 2018
The source recalled that one of the major controversies in 2019 was the requirement that banks report certain transactions—including family remittances above specific thresholds—to the UAF.
“Before 2018, this was not contemplated in existing laws or regulations,” the expert noted.
“However, regarding credit and debit cards, banks had always maintained records of all transactions. What changed was the level of monitoring and the reporting and traceability requirements. The reforms enacted in 2019, together with those approved in 2026, create a much broader legal framework allowing the UAF and other authorities to request and obtain this information from financial institutions,” the specialist added.
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Through an amendment to Article 24 of Law 977 concerning payments and value transfers, the dictatorship inserted a second paragraph instructing relevant supervisors to “issue regulations governing the collection and retention of data and information related to transactions in which customers use credit, debit, or prepaid cards. Such information must be obtained, transmitted, and retained by obligated entities that issue and administer payment instruments.”
Prior to the reform, the same article was less detailed but already contained a similar requirement. It stated:
“Relevant supervisors must establish the information regarding originators and beneficiaries of electronic transfers, remittance services, and similar transactions that must be obtained, transmitted, and retained by obligated entities, whether natural or legal persons, acting as originating, intermediary, and/or beneficiary financial institutions, both in cross-border and domestic operations.”
UAF Gains Greater Access Capabilities
Electronic transfers include card transactions, as well as the broader category of financial information covered under anti-money laundering legislation enacted by the Ortega-Murillo regime in recent years. While many of these measures stem from international regulatory requirements, analysts have argued that the government has manipulated them as instruments of political persecution against opponents.
“What this latest reform does is not expand the volume of transaction data collected, but rather broaden the State’s powers to investigate, freeze, and confiscate assets in cases related to money laundering, organized crime, and virtual assets. It also expands and strengthens the role of the UAF and increases the number of entities required to report information,” the specialist said.
He added that “banks were already recording all card transactions and transfers, including remittances, and are required to retain those records in their databases for several years. What changes now is that the UAF will have greater capacity to obtain that information.”
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According to data from the Superintendency of Banks and Other Financial Institutions, as of the first quarter of this year there were 1.75 million payment cards in circulation in Nicaragua, representing a loan portfolio balance equivalent to 24.215 billion córdobas. Of that total, 825,537 cards were denominated in local currency.
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