Mexico's banking system shrinks

Banks operating in Mexico are closing the largest number of branches so far in order to favor market strategies, bankers and rating agencies said.

The 45 commercial banks that operate in the country closed 553 branches during the first half of this year and opened 88, which means the country has 465 branches less, the largest drop for any semester since 2009.

The last time banks closed such a large number of branches was in the first half of 2009, during the world economic crisis, when they closed 1,188 branches and opened 827, leaving a negative balance of 361 units.

According to figures from the National Banking and Securities Commission (CNBV), the total number of bank branches in Mexico dropped to 12,233 in June 2015, the lowest in three years.

The bank with more branches is Azteca, with 1,834, followed by BBVA Bancomer with 1,821, while Banamex is third, with 1,494 branches. These three banks have 42% of all branches until June this year.