89th Banking Convention: Banks and the Government Close Ranks to Boost SME Lending and Digital Payments

The agreements aim to raise bank lending to 45% of GDP and speed up the modernization of the payments system.

The 89th Banking Convention delivered a core message to the market: the government, regulators, and banks want to accelerate financial deepening in Mexico, with an explicit focus on more credit for micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) and on digitizing the payments system. President Claudia Sheinbaum reiterated the goal of lifting bank financing from levels near 38% of GDP to 45%, in a country where bank credit remains low compared with peer economies in Latin America and, especially, with OECD members.

This is no small objective. In an environment of moderate growth and investment facing headwinds—still-elevated financing costs, sector-specific uncertainty, and infrastructure needs—the banking system’s ability to channel resources to productive companies can become a lever for expansion. The administration’s proposal also fits within a public policy strategy aimed at broadening the reach of the formal financial system and reducing cash usage, with direct implications for productivity, security, and tax collection.

In parallel with the Convention’s discussions, the Bank of Mexico (Banxico) moved forward on its regulatory agenda for digital payments, issuing rules intended to simplify the transfer experience and improve interoperability for tools such as CoDi and Dimo. Governor Victoria Rodríguez stressed that technological innovation can drive down costs, expand geographic coverage, and improve credit-risk assessment—factors that, if well executed, could broaden the range of products available to households and businesses that are currently underserved.

From the Finance Ministry, Édgar Amador Zamora emphasized the economic weight of MSMEs: they account for the vast majority of establishments and a substantial share of employment. The diagnosis, however, is familiar: many operate with low levels of banking penetration, high informality, and limited access to competitively priced financing, which constrains investment, technology adoption, and scaling. For that reason, the ministry argued that expanding credit is not only an inclusion issue, but also one of productivity and of strengthening supply chains.

Regulators also highlighted a nonnegotiable condition: credit expansion must occur with integrity and prudence. Ángel Cabrera, president of the National Banking and Securities Commission (CNBV), said the system’s strength is measured not only by capital or liquidity indicators, but by its ability to turn stability into real opportunities for households and businesses—while preserving risk-management and compliance standards.

From the industry side, Emilio Romano, president of the Mexican Banking Association (ABM), presented a roadmap to 2030 built around four pillars: financial education, customer empowerment, financial inclusion and digitalization, and boosting credit. The proposal acknowledges a recurring challenge: in Mexico, announcements aren’t enough; the real test will be whether commitments translate into sustainable loan origination, better terms for borrowers, and reduced operational friction.

Lending to MSMEs: The Challenge Is Growing Without Deteriorating the Loan Book

Raising bank financing to 45% of GDP means increasing credit penetration in segments where risk is uneven and financial information is often incomplete. For the jump to be feasible, the system will need to combine better assessment models (using digital transactional data), guarantee schemes, and greater business formalization—along with faster, cheaper processes. From a macro perspective, the challenge is to expand credit without triggering a meaningful deterioration in nonperforming loans, especially in a context where rates have begun to normalize gradually, but the cost of money remains a key factor for SMEs with thin margins.

Incentive design also matters. If the digitization of payments reduces cash use and increases income traceability, banks can build more reliable credit histories and offer better-priced financing. However, adoption depends on infrastructure (connectivity, terminals, interoperability), user trust, and a frictionless user experience. In that sense, coordination among Banxico, the CNBV, the Finance Ministry, and the industry will be critical so that modernizing the payments system translates into more accessible credit—and not just more digital transfers.

Another angle is infrastructure investment and the so-called “Plan México”: if the goal is to accelerate projects with regional impact, bank credit can complement public funds and attract private investment, as long as clear rules, legal certainty, and risk-mitigation mechanisms are in place. For the market, the key signal will be whether these agreements evolve into bankable pipelines, with transparent structures and effective oversight.

Looking ahead, the consensus that emerged from the Convention points to one priority: deepening the financial system so growth doesn’t rely solely on consumption or the external cycle. The key will be balancing credit expansion, digitalization, and regulation: if measures reduce costs and improve risk assessment, Mexico could make progress on inclusion and productivity; if not, the 45% of GDP target could remain an aspirational horizon.