The United States is increasing pressure on Mexican banks to help stop drug cartels from hiding illegal money. Behind closed doors, top U.S. officials recently met with Mexican banking leaders to talk about ways to block money earned through drug trafficking and fuel theft. This meeting was held quietly during a major banking event in Mexico, and it shows just how serious the U.S. is about cutting off the money flow to criminal groups.
U.S. authorities are deeply concerned that Mexican drug cartels are using banks, international trade, and even cryptocurrencies to clean their money. Cartels such as the Sinaloa and CJNG (Jalisco New Generation Cartel) are said to be using these channels to move millions of dollars without raising suspicion. These organizations do not just smuggle drugs—they also steal fuel and resell it, making huge profits along the way.
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) recently released a report showing how these cartels operate not only in Mexico but across Latin America and China. These groups are now involved in gasoline smuggling, known in Mexico as huachicol, which not only costs the Mexican government billions in lost taxes but also hurts U.S. energy companies.
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New Rules, New Risks for Mexican Banks
The Trump administration has taken a more aggressive approach by officially labeling several Mexican and South American criminal groups as “terrorist organizations.” This move gives the U.S. government more power to freeze their assets and block their members from using the U.S. banking system. It also means that anyone who helps these groups—knowingly or not—could face serious legal consequences.
To keep up with these new rules, the U.S. Treasury Department sent one of its top officials to meet with Mexico’s biggest banks. The message was clear: the U.S. expects Mexico to take stronger action to prevent illegal money from entering the financial system.
Mexican banking leaders said they are ready to work with the U.S. They discussed creating a shared task force to speed up the exchange of financial information and improve systems for spotting suspicious activity. The goal is to catch illegal transactions early and prevent them from becoming part of the legal economy.
Mexico does have a law to stop money laundering, but experts say it’s outdated and not fully enforced. Public records about financial crime are limited, and only a small number of cases are ever reported. From 2019 to 2021, the Mexican government identified more than 43 billion pesos in dirty money—but officials admit this is just a small part of the problem.
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Cartels have become smarter and more creative in hiding their money. They now use small businesses, fake companies, and digital currencies to move money around the world. One common method is working with Chinese criminal groups and using underground banking systems to clean their profits.
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In 2024 alone, the U.S. government seized over $30 million in cash linked to these networks, mostly in border states like California, Texas, Arizona, and New Mexico. These seizures show just how big and well-organized the criminal money flow has become.
Experts say that much of the laundering is done outside the traditional banking system. This makes it harder for banks and governments to track and stop. When too many rules are placed on banks, criminals often switch to using cash or other secret methods to hide their money.
Even though Mexico follows international rules to prevent money laundering, experts worry that stronger controls could drive more transactions into the hidden economy. Criminals are always looking for weak spots and new ways to move money. The fight to protect the financial system from illegal activity is becoming more intense, especially as the U.S. continues to crack down on cartel finances.
The pressure from the U.S. is not just about protecting its own country—it is also forcing Mexico to take a closer look at its own financial system. As both countries face growing threats from drug cartels, the focus is now on stopping the money that keeps these groups running.
