In Acapulco, the good performance of banks and businessmen during the last six years was highlighted, even in the context of the pandemic they have done well. The presidential candidates maintained that, despite the differences, the crucial thing is to focus on the points of agreement that contribute to the democratic advance of the country.
In 2024, the economy seems to behave better than expected, with the results released yesterday by the IGAE, the economy accelerated in the second month with an increase of 2.6 percent in February, which gives a climate of dynamic stability to the economy and therefore, guarantees that the financial system could continue expanding its operations in a climate of macroeconomic stability. This situation appears stable given the statements that the current Secretary of the Treasury could be kept, which could guarantee the continuity of government policies and thus, an orderly transition.
Assuming a stability scheme in the transition, it is necessary to establish an agenda to deepen the country’s financial development. In these terms, a first task would be to deepen financial inclusionAlthough there has been progress in recent years, there is still a large segment of the Mexican population that does not have access to formal financial services. The financial system needs to face the challenge of expanding financial inclusion and reaching these unbanked populations. In this sense, a public-private program is required that deepens banking penetration and reorganizes the public financial system to make the large Development Banking institutions functional again in support of an expansion of the financial system in the most lagging regions of the country. Reorganizing this sector is essential, for all this a new financing policy is necessary. Without its support, industrial policy is just good intentions. It is necessary to strengthen Nafin and Bancomext, independent of each other, with sufficient resources to finance industrialization programs in the various regions of Mexico and finance the new stage of nearshoring in new regions of the country such as the southeast, in this perspective a leading role should be given to these two institutions, so that they can be emulated with the development banks of other latitudes, as is the case of the National Development Bank of Brazil (BNDES). ), which today offers financing for the productive sector of around 25 percent of the GDP, in Mexico the development bank today grants 4 percent of the GDP. It is necessary to reorganize support for micro-entrepreneurs and support for families, merging the Welfare Bank with the Welfare Finance.
At the time of nearshoring Commercial banking should be linked through explicit policies to the support of industrialization and the relocation of companies, it should be sought to contribute to the objectives of industrial development throughout the country, the new government should ask the financial sector to present a financing program for the dynamic industrialization of the southern regions of the country, among others, financing companies that seek to establish themselves in the Transisthmian Corridor, a project that the country needs to place as strategic, a window of opportunity was opened for the country with the canal crisis of Panama, it is time to promote the transformation of the isthmus as a priority.
The financial system needs to remain at the tip of the iceberg, in terms of technology and competition, the emergence of disruptive technologies, such as artificial intelligence, blockchain and the fintech They have changed the ways in which traditional financial institutions operate. These technologies can offer opportunities to improve efficiency and customer experience, but require stronger financial institutions to adapt and compete. Some banks, the largest, are introducing these technologies in their relationship with clients, however, the rest of the financial system has lagged behind. In this sense, the National Banking and Securities Commission should establish standards that must be met by all banks in terms of technology and competition. All banks need to be made to promote a new dawn for all the lagging regions of the country.
The public sector, in its role as regulator, also needs to modernize to ensure that cybersecurity is met, since the increase in online financial transactions and the use of emerging financial technologies, such as fintech, cybersecurity becomes a crucial challenge. Protecting sensitive customer information and ensuring the integrity of transactions will be critical to maintaining trust in the financial system.
For an accelerated development of financing, it is necessary to update the regulatory framework of the financial sector, since the new financing schemes are more complex and change quickly. Likewise, regulators need to stay updated to prevent the emergence of illegal transactions supported by new technologies.
For the new administration of the country, it is necessary to think in two dimensions to maintain financial stability, which is essential for the proper functioning of the financial system. Regulators and financial institutions must closely monitor systemic risks, such as excessive debt or risk concentration, to prevent financial crises. At the same time, they need to ensure that the overvaluation of the currency does not inhibit the development of activities that drive the export sector, as already happened in the first quarter of 2024. It is necessary to think that maintaining the interest rate without adjustments may sometimes not give the appropriate signals to the development of the country’s export sector. It is time for reflection to promote more dynamic growth of the economy.
