The U.S. State Department labels Mexico as a major money laundering country. Illicit actors launder billions of dollars of drug trafficking proceeds through the Mexican financial system annually. Illicit drug proceeds leaving the United States are the principal sources of funds laundered through the Mexican financial system. Corruption, bulk cash smuggling, kidnapping, extortion, fuel theft, intellectual property rights violations, fraud, human smuggling, and trafficking in persons and firearms serve as sources of additional funds laundered through Mexico. Money laundering through the luxury real estate sector remains a concern, especially as a vehicle for laundering the proceeds of public corruption. Popular laundering methods include: the use of dollar-denominated illicit proceeds to purchase retail items for export and resale in Mexico or the U.S. and routing the revenues from the sales to transnational criminal organizations; investment in financial and real estate assets such as property and luxury items, particularly with respect to proceeds laundered due to public corruption; structure deposits where cash deposits into accounts in the U.S. are funneled into a single account and wire to Mexico; and use of unlicensed exchange houses to funnel narcotics-related proceeds.

-Source: 2020 International Narcotics Control Strategy Report (INCSR)

Rankings

Rank : 68/141

Score : 5.2/10

Rank : 130/180

Score : 29/100

Rank : 80/133

Score : 53/100

Mexico