MEXICO

On February 22 the Secretary of Finance and Public Credit, Rogelio Ramírez de la O, and the Secretary General of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Mathias Corman, launched a new edition of the Economic Survey of Mexico. The analysis includes a series of recommendations aimed at reducing certain inequalities and strengthening economic development. Among them, it highlights the promotion of financial inclusion by taking greater advantage of the digitalization of means of payment and increasing the participation of the fintech industry. Mexico could implement these actions in the medium term.

The text recommends the country to strengthen its digital infrastructure with a view to more efficiently disseminate digital financial services to the population. In this regard, the OECD specifies that the digitalization of payment methods should be promoted by reducing the costs of financial services and updating the regulatory framework governing digital payments.

Likewise, the text also recommends the Central Bank of Mexico (Banxico) and the National Banking and Securities Commission (CNBV in Spanish) to eliminate regulatory barriers that prevent the entry of new stakeholders to the Mexican card market. In this regard, the OECD document specifically mentions the preliminary opinion issued by the Federal Economic Competition Commission (COFECE in Spanish), which verified indications of lack of competition in this sector.

On the other hand, the study also recommends Mexico to promote the fintech industry in order to accelerate the development of digital payments, boost financial inclusion and increase competition in the financial sector.