Bitso Says It Moves 14.7% of US Remittances to Mexico
ECONOMY · MEXICO
Key Facts
- —The country Mexico received US$41.8 billion in remittances in January–August 2026, up 2.2% on a year earlier, according to the central bank, Banxico (data of 1 October).
- —What happened Mexican crypto exchange Bitso said it processed 14.7% of remittance volume sent from the US to Mexico in January–August 2026, Expansión reported on 2 October.
- —Who is involved Bitso Business, the firm’s unit that supplies payment infrastructure to remittance companies and other financial institutions. It moves value with stablecoins and pays out in local currency.
- —What it means for you Senders and recipients keep using their usual remittance firm. Bitso works behind it, so a growing share of family transfers runs over crypto rails without users seeing it.
- —Still open The 14.7% is Bitso’s own estimate. No regulator has confirmed it, and the reported figures include no dollar volume or list of client firms.
Bitso, a Mexican cryptocurrency exchange, says it processed 14.7% of remittances sent from the United States to Mexico in January–August 2026. Business magazine Expansión reported the figure on 2 October, citing the company.
If accurate, that makes the firm one of the larger channels for migrant money into the country. The number comes from the company alone, and it lands as overall remittance flows have started to wobble.
What Bitso Says It Does
The exchange does not sell transfers to migrants directly. Its business unit supplies the plumbing to remittance companies and other financial institutions.
According to the company, that technology converts dollars into stablecoins, which are crypto tokens pegged to the dollar. The value then crosses the border and is paid out in Mexican pesos.
Close to 15% of US–Mexico remittances now pass through its infrastructure, said Felipe Vallejo, the company’s director general in Mexico. “Digital assets are ceasing to be a niche technology,” he added, calling them part of Latin America’s financial plumbing.
The company also offers crypto and share trading, and it connects to SPEI, the Mexican central bank’s instant payment system. For the person collecting the money, the crypto leg is invisible.
A Share That Has Kept Rising
The new figure extends a long climb in the company’s own estimates. In February 2020 a company analyst told CriptoNoticias the firm had handled 3.5% of remittances entering Mexico in January that year.
By 2024, Expansión reports, the company put its share of the corridor at more than 10%, counting Bitso Business clients. The 14.7% for 2026 would be the highest share it has claimed.
The growth fits a regional shift to stablecoins, tracked in Bitcoin Slips as Iran Snub Lifts Oil; LatAm Sticks to Stablecoins last week. It also follows the near-total shift of Mexican remittances to digital channels.
Live Market IntelligenceMexico — Live Market Board
Rio Times · Live Market Intelligence
Mexico — Live Market Board
-0.18%
192,114.55
+2.63%
63,712.24
-0.18%
10,916.59
+0.08%
2,767,663
+0.32%
2,515.02
-0.59%
59,751.67
+0.18%
| Instrument | Last | Change | YoY | Prev. | High | Low | Volume |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IPC MEX | 63,712.24 | -0.18% | +12.17% | 63,828.60 | 66,121 | 65,405 | 108,886,187 |
| USD/MXN | 17.06 | -0.24% | -8.58% | 17.10 | 17.08 | 17.01 | — |
| WALMEX | 48.07 | -0.62% | -14.38% | 48.37 | 48.65 | 48.02 | 10,781,446 |
| GMEXICO | 223.28 | +0.35% | +73.59% | 222.50 | 226.18 | 222.17 | 1,325,556 |
| FEMSA | 201.19 | -0.24% | +25.67% | 201.67 | 206.71 | 199.56 | 750,706 |
| CEMEX | 19.32 | +0.89% | +19.10% | 19.15 | 19.35 | 19.04 | 14,327,054 |
| GFNORTE | 193.98 | +1.18% | +14.36% | 191.71 | 195.79 | 191.83 | 1,579,115 |
| BIMBO | 60.98 | -0.96% | +11.89% | 61.57 | 61.46 | 60.29 | 1,048,115 |
| TELEVISA | 9.71 | +0.21% | +12.78% | 9.69 | 9.75 | 9.60 | 577,851 |
| AMX | 19.80 | -0.95% | +12.53% | 19.99 | 20.05 | 19.70 | 58,058,525 |
| GAP | 366.23 | +0.43% | -21.21% | 364.68 | 370.85 | 362.82 | 226,946 |
| ASUR | 275.04 | +1.25% | -15.28% | 271.64 | 275.08 | 271.31 | 15,451 |
| OMA | 233.50 | +0.62% | -6.48% | 232.06 | 235.00 | 230.62 | 555,693 |
| KOF | 188.04 | +0.86% | +18.94% | 186.44 | 188.56 | 185.52 | 425,273 |
| GRUMA | 252.90 | +0.11% | -21.85% | 252.61 | 254.74 | 250.36 | 90,048 |
| KIMBER | 39.74 | +0.43% | +8.85% | 39.57 | 40.09 | 39.33 | 490,551 |
| AMX ADR | 23.38 | -0.23% | +22.25% | 23.43 | 23.49 | 23.06 | 1,347,445 |
Flows Are Growing, but Unevenly
Banxico’s data, published on 1 October, show remittances of US$41.8 billion in the first eight months of 2026. Of that, US$41.4 billion, or 99.1%, arrived by electronic transfer.
August alone brought US$5.45 billion, down 3.6% on a year earlier, Banxico said. Alto Nivel reported 13.2 million transfers that month, 6.4% fewer, with the average sum up 3.0% to US$412.
BBVA México, quoted by Expansión, said the August dip was the first after six monthly increases and stayed within expected ranges. It pointed to a stronger peso, averaging 17.16 to the dollar in August, and to volatility from US migration policy.
The peso has since weakened, as covered in Mexico’s Peso Breaks 18 per Dollar: What It Means for Expats and Remittances. For earlier context, see Mexico Remittance Rebound Reaches 3.8% as Latin America Braces for US Tax Vote.
Speed Gains, New Dependencies
The firm argues its rails let money arrive more efficiently, faster and more safely. Expansión’s report did not include fee or settlement-time comparisons to test that claim.
The trade-off is concentration. If a seventh of the corridor’s money relies on one private network and on stablecoins, their reliability matters to millions of households.
What Is Not Yet Known
Bitso has not published the dollar volume behind the 14.7%, nor how it measures total corridor flows. Banxico’s figures cover all remittances, not only those from the United States.
It is also unclear which remittance firms use the network and which stablecoins carry the value. Nor is it known whether Mexican regulators track the crypto leg separately.
Sources: Expansión, 2 October 2026 (Bitso statement, BBVA México analysis); Banco de México remittance data for August 2026 as reported by Alto Nivel, 1 October 2026; CriptoNoticias, 16 February 2020.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief
In depth
LatAm Markets: Live Signals → — real-time movers, turnover leaders and FX across Latin America.