Mexico: Regulators face off over probes into collusion

Mexico’s National Banking and Securities Commission (CNBV) called on banks to limit the information they send to the Federal Economic Commission for Competition (Cofece), amid a dispute between the two regulators for the investigation of possible monopolistic practices in the market according to three sources consulted by Bloomberg.

This measure is the latest escalation of tensions between the CNBV and Cofece, which have argued over who should conduct the inquiry into possible collusion of financial institutions that would affect Mexico’s sovereign debt market, where up to MX$100 billion (US$5.6 billion) are traded each day.

The CNBV’s scrutiny of banks is hampering Cofece’s work, said Luis Santos, a lawyer at one of the banks linked to the investigation of possible monopoly practices.

According to Bloomberg, local branches of Santander, BBVA Bancomer, JP Morgan Chase, HSBC, Barclay’s, Citigroup and Bank of America are the focus of the investigations.

The dispute highlights rising tensions between two agencies locked in a turf war over a high-profile investigation that threatens to upend Mexico’s US$400 billion market for local sovereign bonds. People close to both organizations have dismissed the ability of the other regulator to effectively conduct the probe.

Full Content: Bloomberg

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