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Mexican Bankers Warn Against Tighter Regulation
 Noel Randewich - Reuters
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April 23, 2010
Acapulco, Mexico - Mexico's financial industry is well regulated and additional rules could slow the growth of credit by the country's banks, executives warned on Thursday.
Mexico's banking industry, led by Citigroup and Spain's BBVA, weathered the global crisis well compared to banks in other countries because they stuck to traditional lending and had little to do with subprime loans or complicated derivatives.
Now discussions in Europe and the United States about tightening financial regulation have Mexican bankers at an annual convention in Acapulco worried about a backlash that could see already strict local rules made tougher.
"We ask the authorities to keep the pendulum from swinging," Luis Robles, executive president of Mexico's bank association, told reporters. "We want to keep the pendulum from swinging and affecting the capacity in Mexico to keep providing credit."
Mexico's regulator holds local banks to strict standards compared to many developed countries. During the financial crisis they struggled with rising loan defaults due to a spike in unemployment but none of the big banks ever reached dangerously low capitalization levels.
Last year, Mexican regulators tightened rules for provisions against possible losses in banks' credit card portfolios and authorities are now eyeing more changes.
"We're talking to authorities about mortgage and business lending. We're barely in preliminary talks but it should be done within a few months," said Luis Pena, head of HSBC's Mexican unit.
Governments around the world are pushing for increased financial regulation to head off future crises.
In a speech in New York, U.S. President Barack Obama scolded Wall Street on Thursday for risk-taking that led to the financial crisis and urged the banking industry to stop its "furious efforts" to block tighter regulations.
(Editing by Tim Dobbyn)
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