UIF and National Guard expand financial intelligence sharing
Original reporting: Infobae México
What happened
An October 13 agreement sets rules for UIF–National Guard data exchanges, analysis training and oversight, according to an October 21 Finance Ministry statement cited by Infobae México.
Reporting and context
Mexico's Finance and Defense ministries signed an agreement on October 13 to strengthen information sharing between the Financial Intelligence Unit (UIF) and the National Guard to detect and prevent operations involving illicit funds, Infobae México reported, citing a Finance Ministry statement released October 21.
According to Infobae México, the pact establishes mechanisms to identify suspected illicit transactions and trace the ultimate beneficiary of assets or funds. The National Guard may provide information from its databases and records, while the UIF may share intelligence developed from reports submitted by entities required to report financial activity.
The information must be exchanged under rules covering legality, security, integrity and confidentiality, including obligations to protect personal data and restricted documents. The agreement also provides for operational and strategic analysis training and a working group to coordinate and oversee implementation, in line with Financial Action Task Force recommendations.
The report places the agreement alongside President Claudia Sheinbaum's October 14 comments on cooperation with U.S. financial sanctions. She said Mexico can support account freezes when the UIF detects irregularities, but that a U.S. sanction remains a U.S. measure when the Mexican unit finds no supporting evidence.
Infobae México reported that the U.S. Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control had sanctioned four people and 11 Mexican companies over an alleged money-laundering and political-campaign financing scheme. U.S. authorities alleged that a network including Construcciones y Edificaciones Garza Elías, known as CEGESA, was controlled by the Northeast Cartel. Sheinbaum said Finance Ministry information provided to her had not established a criminal-organization link for the companies concerned, and that Mexico requests evidence before pursuing such allegations.
For context, Infobae's contract review found that CEGESA received at least 109,963,858 pesos through three CODEFRONT contracts awarded between 2022 and 2026 for works in Anáhuac, Nuevo León, at the CEFACIL trade facilities and Colombia-Laredo border port.
Original report — Infobae México