Background on the Significance of the Agreement
At the 88th Banking Convention in Nuevo Nayarit, Nayarit, the Mexican Banking Association (ABM) and the government led by President Claudia Sheinbaum signed an agreement to facilitate access to credit for micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Currently, only 4.4% of SMEs have bank financing.
The ABM highlighted that the banking sector finances more than half of the credit in the country, with 56 million daily operations and a nationwide presence through branches, ATMs, and correspondents.
Agreement Details
- 1. Response to Plan México: The initiative falls under the framework of Plan México, President Claudia Sheinbaum’s strategy to attract investments and accelerate economic growth in the country.
- 2. Seven Credit Facilitators: The agreement focuses on seven areas: financial education, digitalization and formalization, supply chains, regulatory simplification, specialized commercial courts, public guarantees, and access to financial information.
- 3. Support from Development Banks: The agreement aims to promote the use of guarantees, enabling commercial banks to assume lower risks when lending to small businesses.
- 4. Advantages of Traditional Banking: According to the ABM, banks offer loans at average interest rates 29 percentage points lower than unregulated financial intermediaries.
- 5. 2030 Targets: The agreement aims to increase bank credit coverage for SMEs by 3.5% annually and achieve at least a 30% financing coverage in this sector.
ABM President’s Statement
Julio Carranza, president of the ABM, emphasized that although challenges remain, this agreement marks a crucial step towards making bank credit a real development catalyst for Mexico’s SMEs.
