Ecuador Remittances Reach USD 1.8567 Billion In First Quarter Of 2026
Remittances into Ecuador totaled USD 1.8567 billion in the first quarter of 2026, after reaching a record USD 7.7295 billion in 2025.
The first-quarter figure was 7.7% above the USD 1.7243 billion received in the first quarter of 2025, but 7.9% below the USD 2.0155 billion received in the fourth quarter of 2025.
Source Markets
The United States remained the leading origin market, with USD 1.441 billion sent from January to March 2026.
That represented 77.6% of all recorded remittances.
Spain ranked second with USD 264.8 million, followed by Italy with USD 34.6 million. Other countries together accounted for USD 116.4 million.
Outflows And Macro Weight
Remittances sent from Ecuador abroad totaled USD 95.8 million in the first quarter, down 10.8% year over year and 16.5% from the previous quarter.
In 2025, remittances were equivalent to 5.9% of GDP and became Ecuador’s second-largest source of foreign-exchange income after shrimp exports.
The Finance Ministry estimate cited for 2026 points to USD 6.858 billion in remittance inflows by year-end.
What To Watch
The operating signal is whether the first-quarter deceleration is seasonal or structural. Banks, fintechs, retailers, and consumer lenders should watch U.S.-origin flows, the 1% U.S. remittance tax that began on January 1, 2026, and whether household cash inflows keep supporting consumption outside formal wage growth.
Source
El Universo — "Remesas de migrantes a Ecuador sumaron $ 1.856 millones en el primer trimestre de 2026"
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