MEXICO Law and Practice Contributed by: Lizette Neme, Andrea López-Malo, Shannon Reilly, Rodolfo Flores and Dunia Salum, Áurea Partners
10.7 Crypto-Related Lending In Mexico, the provision of lending services involving cryptocurrencies (virtual assets) is not explicitly regu - lated as a financial activity under current legislation. While the Fintech Law provides a limited regulatory framework for the use of virtual assets by fintech insti - tutions, it does not extend to the offering of credit or lending services denominated in, or backed by, cryp - tocurrencies. As a result, companies or platforms offering crypto- based lending operate in a regulatory grey area and are not subject to supervision by the CNBV or Banxico unless they also engage in other regulated financial services. However, given that these activities involve the granting of credit or loans, they may fall within the scope of “vulnerable activities” under the AML Law, which classifies the offering of loans, with or without collateral, by non-financial entities as subject to AML obligations. In such cases, service providers must identify clients and file reports with the SHCP when they reach a certain threshold. Therefore, while crypto lending is not expressly pro - hibited, it is currently unregulated and may still trigger AML reporting requirements depending on how the service is structured and offered. 10.8 Cryptocurrency Derivatives Cryptocurrency derivatives cannot be offered to the public through Mexican regulated entities unless explicitly authorised, and no such authorisation has been granted to date. Please see 10.1 Use of Blockchain in the Financial Services Industry . 10.9 Decentralised Finance (DeFi) As of today, there is no specific regulation in Mexico that directly governs DeFi protocols or platforms. The existing legal framework is focused on centralised, identifiable financial intermediaries, such as banks, broker-dealers, and licensed fintech institutions. However, the absence of DeFi-specific regulation does not mean that all DeFi-related activities are unregulated. Authorities may assess what the platform or participants do, rather than how the technology is
labelled. If trading involves security tokens, the Secu - rities Market Law may apply, and where it involves the exchange of cryptocurrencies by non-financial enti - ties, AML/CTF obligations may be triggered. Therefore, if a person or entity develops, controls, markets, or profits from a DeFi protocol, authorities may look through the decentralised label and treat There is no specific regulation for funds investing in blockchain assets. Funds will have to comply with the Investment Funds Law, regardless of the assets in which they invest. 10.11 Virtual Currencies In Mexico, virtual assets and blockchain assets are distinct. • Virtual assets: defined by the Fintech Law as digital representations of value used as a means of pay - ment. They are not legal tender, are not securities, and lack government backing. Mexican banks and fintechs are prohibited from offering them directly to the public. • Blockchain assets: unlike virtual assets, they lack a specific legal definition in Mexico. While virtual assets are a type of blockchain asset used for pay - ments, other blockchain applications (like NFTs or utility tokens) may be treated as intangible property under general civil or commercial law rather than financial regulation. 10.12 NFTs them as a functional intermediary. 10.10 Regulation of Funds NFTs and NFT platforms are not regulated in Mexican law, but they are subject to certain regulatory frame - works based on the nature of the asset and the activ - ities involved, including the Fintech Law, Securities Market Law, Banxico regulations, consumer protec - tion laws and intellectual property laws. Cases where NFTs may be regulated by financial laws include: • when NFTs are used as a means of payment or involve the custody or transfer of funds (which could qualify as regulated activities under the Fin - tech Law);
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