USD to MXN for business payments
To pay a Mexican supplier in pesos, convert US dollars to Mexican pesos (MXN) and pay the supplier's 18 digit CLABE, ideally as a local SPEI transfer rather than a SWIFT wire. What you pay is the gap between your rate and the mid-market rate, plus the payment fee. This page covers how the peso is set, the Banco de México rules that matter, the details to collect and when paying in dollars is the better choice.
- The Mexican peso is issued by Banco de México (Banxico), and a Banxico publication records that the peso was allowed to float on 22 December 1994.
- Banxico publishes the FIX rate every banking day, and a dollar debt payable in Mexico can be settled in pesos at the FIX published on the banking day before payment.
- SPEI, the peso transfer system Banxico owns and operates, settles in real time 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and pays to the 18 digit CLABE every Mexican bank account carries.
- Mexican banks can hold US dollar demand accounts for companies domiciled anywhere in Mexico, but individuals qualify only near the northern border or in Baja California and Baja California Sur.
- Federal Reserve Financial Services accepts FedGlobal ACH payments originated to Mexico only until 20 November 2026, so US banks that used it need another route for pesos.
The Mexican peso and how its rate is set
The Mexican peso (code MXN) is issued by Banco de México, known as Banxico, the country's central bank. A Banxico publication on the 1994 crisis records that the exchange rate band was abandoned and the peso was allowed to float on 22 December 1994, and describes the result as a free-floating regime (régimen de libre flotación). A floating rate is set by supply and demand in the market, not fixed by the central bank, so the number of pesos a dollar buys changes through every trading day.
Banxico also publishes the reference rate Mexican businesses use most: the FIX. Banxico sets it every banking day from an average of wholesale market quotes, releases it from 12:00 noon and publishes it in the Diario Oficial de la Federación (DOF), the official gazette, on the next banking day. Under Article 172 of Banxico's Circular 3/2012, a US dollar obligation payable in Mexico can be settled by delivering pesos at the FIX published on the banking day before payment.
| Item | Mexico |
|---|---|
| Currency and code | Mexican peso, MXN |
| Issuer | Banco de México (Banxico) |
| Exchange rate | Floating since 22 December 1994, as recorded by Banxico |
| Reference rate | FIX, set every banking day and published in the DOF |
| Local transfer system | SPEI, owned and operated by Banxico, 24/7 |
| Account identifier | CLABE, 18 digits |
| Who can hold a dollar account | Companies domiciled in Mexico; individuals only in the northern border strip and Baja California (Sur) |
Sources: Banco de México publication; Banxico FIX; Banxico SPEI; Banxico Circular 3/2012. As published on 29 October 2026.
Banxico rules that shape a peso payment
The Banxico rules that affect a supplier payment are about which accounts can hold dollars and how dollar debts are settled. Four points decide how your money lands.
- Who can hold dollars. Article 46 of Circular 3/2012 lets Mexican banks take US dollar demand deposits from companies domiciled in Mexico. Individuals qualify only if they live within 20 kilometers of the northern border or in Baja California or Baja California Sur, so a sole trader in Mexico City or Guadalajara usually has a peso account only.
- Dollars sent to a peso account. BBVA México states that a foreign currency transfer received into an account in another currency is credited at the market rate at the moment of receipt. The supplier's bank chooses that rate, not you.
- Dollar debts inside Mexico. A Mexican customer that owes dollars payable in Mexico may pay in pesos at the previous banking day's FIX (Article 172). This is why some Mexican suppliers price in dollars but accept pesos.
- A US route that is closing. Federal Reserve Financial Services is discontinuing FedGlobal ACH. Its notice of 25 November 2025 states that the service accepts payments originated to Mexico until 20 November 2026; returns continue after that date.
These rules are addressed to Mexican banks and account holders. In practice they decide which currency the supplier can receive and who sets the rate on arrival.
Details you need to pay pesos by SPEI
SPEI (Sistema de Pagos Electrónicos Interbancarios) is Mexico's interbank system for peso transfers. According to Banxico, it settles in real time, runs 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and gives both sides a CEP (Comprobante Electrónico de Pago), an electronic proof of payment anyone in the transaction can download. A provider with access to Mexican rails converts your dollars and pays the supplier's CLABE over SPEI, so the supplier sees a domestic peso credit with no SWIFT receiving fee.
The CLABE (Clave Bancaria Estandarizada) is the 18 digit standardized account number for interbank transfers. BBVA México explains the structure: 3 digits for the bank, 3 for the city or region, 11 for the account and 1 check digit that validates the others. Mexico does not use IBANs. Test a CLABE before the first payment with our CLABE validator.
| Detail | What to collect | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Beneficiary name | Legal name exactly as on the bank statement, for example Proveedora Ejemplo, S.A. de C.V. | BBVA México asks for the name as it appears on the statement |
| CLABE | 18 digits; the first 3 identify the bank | Routes the SPEI credit; the check digit catches typing errors |
| RFC | The supplier's federal taxpayer number, shown on its CFDI invoice | Links the bank details to the company that invoices you |
| Account currency | MXN or USD | A dollar wire into a peso account is converted on arrival |
| SWIFT code (wires only) | 8 or 11 characters; BBVA México's is BCMRMXMMPYM | Needed only if you pay by SWIFT wire |
Sources: BBVA México, international transfers; BBVA México, CLABE; Banxico SPEI. Names are placeholders. As published on 29 October 2026.
Cut-off times, holidays and the reasons Mexican payments are returned are covered in our guide on how to pay suppliers in Mexico.
What converting USD to MXN costs
A conversion has three parts. The mid-market rate is the midpoint between the prices at which banks buy and sell pesos on the wholesale market. The margin is the percentage your bank or provider adds to that rate. The payment fee is the fixed charge for sending, plus any intermediary bank deductions if the money travels by SWIFT.
US banks publish wire fees but not exchange margins. Chase lists $40 for an online international wire in US dollars and $5 for one in a foreign currency, or $0 at $5,000 or more. A low fee on a peso wire does not make it cheap: the conversion cost sits in the rate, which the fee table does not show. On the Mexican side, BBVA México charges 30 US dollars plus IVA, Mexico's value added tax, to receive an international transfer, a charge a domestic SPEI credit does not carry. To measure your margin, compare the rate you are quoted with the mid-market rate at the same moment, or with the day's FIX.
Helm agrees pricing with each business in writing before the account opens, and shows the rate, the fee and the expected arrival before you confirm each payment. See how Helm pricing works.
Helm converts at the mid-market rate plus the published margin and shows the rate, fee and expected arrival before you confirm. It pays suppliers by SWIFT and by local rails in the supplier's currency where available, and your account manager confirms the route for Mexico. On a payment worth $20,000, a 0.50% margin is $100 and a 1.00% margin is $200; see international payments.
Pay in USD or in MXN?
Start from the supplier's invoice and its account. Exporters usually hold a dollar account; smaller suppliers and individuals often hold pesos only.
| Situation | Better choice | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Supplier invoices in MXN | MXN, paid to the CLABE by SPEI | The supplier receives the exact peso amount and a CEP; you see the rate before you pay |
| Supplier is a company with a dollar account and invoices in USD | USD by SWIFT wire | No conversion at either end; send with OUR so the full amount arrives |
| Supplier is an individual or sole trader outside the border zone | MXN | Article 46 limits dollar accounts for individuals, so dollars would be converted by the bank on arrival |
| Supplier prices in USD but bills a dollar debt payable in Mexico | Either | Article 172 allows settlement in pesos at the FIX of the previous banking day |
Sources: Banxico Circular 3/2012, Articles 46 and 172; BBVA México. As published on 29 October 2026.
Paying in pesos moves the exchange risk to you but usually gets a cleaner price, because the supplier does not have to build a conversion buffer into its quote. If you also sell into Mexico and collect dollars there, see the Mexico country guide and our guide to a USD business account in Mexico.
Open a Helm account
USD, EUR and GBP accounts in your company's name, with a named account manager.
Open accountQuestions
Is the Mexican peso a floating currency?
Yes. A Banco de México publication records that the peso was allowed to float on 22 December 1994 and describes the regime as free floating. The market sets the rate, and Banxico publishes the daily FIX as a reference.
What is a CLABE?
The CLABE is the 18 digit standardized account number that every Mexican bank account carries for interbank transfers. The first 3 digits identify the bank, the next 3 the city or region, then 11 the account, and the last digit is a check digit.
How fast is a SPEI payment?
SPEI settles in real time and runs 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, according to Banco de México. Both payer and supplier can download a CEP, the electronic proof of payment.
Can I pay a Mexican supplier in US dollars?
Yes, if the supplier holds a dollar account. Mexican banks can open dollar demand accounts for companies domiciled in Mexico, but individuals qualify only near the northern border or in Baja California and Baja California Sur. Dollars sent to a peso account are converted by the supplier's bank at its rate.
What is the FIX exchange rate?
The FIX is the peso to dollar rate Banco de México sets every banking day from wholesale market quotes and publishes in the official gazette. A dollar obligation payable in Mexico can be settled in pesos at the FIX published the banking day before payment.
Can a US bank still send ACH payments to Mexico?
Federal Reserve Financial Services is discontinuing FedGlobal ACH, and its notice states that payments originated to Mexico are accepted until 20 November 2026. After that, pesos go by SWIFT or through a provider with access to SPEI.
References
- Banco de México: Lecciones institucionales y fortalecimiento de mercados tras la crisis de 1994 (Galia Borja)
- Banco de México: Tipo de cambio FIX para solventar obligaciones en dólares
- Banco de México: SPEI, Sistema de Pagos Electrónicos Interbancarios
- Banco de México: Circular 3/2012 (DOF text), Articles 46 and 172
- BBVA México: Transferencias internacionales para empresas
- BBVA México: Número de cuenta y CLABE interbancaria
- Federal Reserve Financial Services: Discontinuation of FedGlobal ACH Payments (25 November 2025)
- Chase: How Performance Business Checking works (wire fees)
This guide is general information for businesses, not financial, legal or tax advice. Rules, fees and timings were checked against the sources listed on the review date and may change.