Mexico's president slams sanctions on Mexican banks by Trump
administration
[June 27, 2025]
By MEGAN JANETSKY
MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum responded sharply
Thursday to U.S. government sanctions to block transfers from three
Mexican financial institutions, saying Washington hasn't shown evidence
of its allegations of money laundering.
Shortly after, Mexico’s banking authority announced that it was
temporarily taking over management of two of the institutions, CIBanco
and Intercam Banco, to protect creditors.
The U.S. Treasury Department announced the sanctions Wednesday on the
two banks, as well as on the brokerage Vector Casa de Bolsa, alleging
that they had facilitated millions of dollars in money transfers for
Mexican drug cartels.
Sheinbaum said during her morning news briefing Thursday that the
administration of U.S. President Donald Trump had showed no evidence
proving that the institutions carried out any money laundering, despite
repeated requests for such evidence.
“The Treasury Department hasn't provided a single piece of evidence to
show that any money laundering was taking place," she said. “We aren’t
going to cover for anyone, there isn’t impunity here. They have to be
able to demonstrate that there was actually money laundering, not with
words, but with strong evidence."
The accused banks also fired back on the orders, rejecting the
allegations and similarly citing a lack of evidence.
Brokerage firm Vector said Wednesday night in a statement that it
“categorically rejects any allegation that compromises its institutional
integrity" while Intercam said in a statement it denies being involved
in any “illegal practice.” Vector is owned by entrepreneur Alfonso Romo,
who served as chief of staff to ex-President Andrés Manuel López Obrador
early in his presidency.
Manuel Somoza, president of strategies of CIBanco, told local press that
they only heard about the order the same time it was made public, and
claimed that it wasn't a formal legal accusation, but rather an
investigation.
“Our books are open," he said. ”Rumors are clearly damaging, whether
they’re true or not. So, what we want is for (American authorities) to
come and investigate."
The Treasury Department has said the order will go into effect in 21
days. The law officials cited states that they can take such actions
without publicly presenting clear evidence if there are “reasonable
grounds" to believe that the institutions were involved in the money
laundering connected to trafficking.
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Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum attends her morning press
conference at the National Palace in Mexico City, April 2, 2025. (AP
Photo/Marco Ugarte, File)
Sheinbaum said they were notified by American officials of the
accusations ahead of the Wednesday announcement, and that Mexican
financial regulators carried out their own investigations into the
institutions.
They found "administrative infractions," she said, but nothing close
to the accusations being levied by Treasury officials.
Despite that, Mexico's National Banking and Securities commission
said they were temporarily taking over management of CIBanco and
Intercam Banco “in order to protect the interests of public savers
and creditors.”
In the orders blocking transactions between the three institutions
and American banks, the Trump administration alleged that the three
companies facilitated millions of dollars in transfers with Chinese
companies, which it said were used to buy chemicals to produce
fentanyl. The Treasury Department said the institutions had
facilitated transfers to U.S. banks, but officials would not name
which U.S. institutions were implicated nor provide more details.
Sheinbaum countered that their own investigation simply showed that
institutions had strong relationships with Chinese clients and
banks, which she said was more of an indicator that the two
countries share a robust trade relationship. China has been the main
source of chemical precursors to produce fentanyl in Mexico,
according to U.S. authorities. At the same time, the U.S. has
increasingly sought to block growing Chinese influence and
investment in Latin America.
The leader also expressed frustration on Thursday morning, reminding
Trump officials that Mexico is a sovereign nation and must be
treated as an equal by the U.S. government.
“We're no one's piñata," she said. "Mexico must be respected.”
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