Following in the footsteps of other central banks around the world, Mexico’s central bank wants to set up their own CBDC. Private banks in the country have expressed an interested in pitching in and helping with the effort. The Mexican Bank Association president met with the Bank of Mexico’s governor to talk about participating in this effort.
After the meeting, Daniel Becker of the ABM said that the talks were fruitful. If the central bank can take opinions and build a robust CBDC, we can be counted on to help. This will lead to a more robust and efficient financial system for the country and our citizens. He also said that he welcomed the introduction of this new form of currency which will reduce transaction costs. It will become easier to have better interoperability thanks to blockchain technology.
In Latin America, Mexico is one country whose citizens don’t have enough access to banking services due to poor penetration. Most people here believe crypto will lead to more inclusion in the financial services sector. The country’s central bank has not commented or made any statements on whether a national digital currency will be issued or not.
The Office of the Mexican President did announce news about creating a digital version of the national currency, the Peso in January 2022. According to the statement, this should be available by 2024. This announcement galvanized the private banking sector to reach out to the Central Bank to work on this project. If this happens, Mexico will be part of a group of countries already working on creating a national digital currency.
