News

Scoring cash at an ATM could be tricky for World Cup tourists

May 16, 2014

Going to the World Cup soccer tournament next month in Brazil? If so, do some advance ATM reconn online, because once in-country, you could have a hard time finding a machine that will accept your card.

A Bloomberg report said that despite the fact that Brazil boasts more ATMs per capita than any other nation, a lack of shared networks results in a dearth of terminals available to foreign tourists.

One group of U.S. tourists spent half an hour looking for an ATM they could use at the Rio de Janiero airport, ultimately trying five machines and three bankcards before getting cash, Bloomberg said.

The reason for the disconnect seems to be that while Americans tend to be mobile, Brazilians have historically stayed close to home, making it unnecessary for banks to network extensively.

Brazil’s banks and ministry of finance see it as the responsibility of foreign banks to ensure that their cards are compatible with Brazilian ATMs, the article said.