Raúl Gallegos

As an organization, AMEXCAP is working to bring global best practices to Mexico and ensuring the sector performs to the highest standards possible, with full transparency and ethics.

What is your vision as the new president of AMEXCAP?

I am particularly interested in continuing to ensure that, as managers of money, we continue to perform in the best way possible. We have done a lot of learning over the years in terms of the development of new vehicles, in particular, how things are done in developed markets, to bring those best practices to Mexico. We have a huge mandate as an organization to bring such practices here and ensure that we perform to the highest standards possible. We are focused on promoting transparency and ethics, on having the most professional managers possible, and conducting optimal interaction with investors to have the best industry we can. One of the best practices that we specifically want to implement in Mexico is the standardization of reporting. Indeed, it is one of our main projects for this year. We tend to lack standardization from both the investor and the manager side. Much standardization can be introduced in terms of how we provide information to investors. Colombia, for example, has come a long way, in terms of standards and the way firms report information in general.

How would you describe the current state of the private capital and venture capital market in Mexico?

Today, we are in a new phase with both local and international investors, participating in new types of vehicles and more specialized strategies. We are competing against the world for capital, and it has been somewhat of a struggle to attract investor attention to Mexico from other countries that have provided more incentives to their economies. Certain sectors are more challenging than others, but there is excitement in many areas. For example, fintech has shown great potential given the prevailing low level of financial penetration. We all know that financial access means progress and growth. Investors are excited about Mexico because there is a huge opportunity for a deeper financial sector, particularly, through innovation. Additionally, we see Environmental, Social, and Corporate Governance (ESG) as a great area of growth. We are in the early stages of the implementation of ESG practices in the private equity world and in the economy as a whole, and this is an area where this organization is taking a leading role. Another area of great opportunity given what is happening around the world with supply chains, is the industrial sector. We have a large and well-established manufacturing base that has seen double digit growth in the last two decades and supplies all major economies, together with a very solid distribution and logistics sector. Finally, our tourism sector is one of the largest ones in the World. We have a strong offering, with great service, variety of experiences so the potential is huge.

What can be done to strengthen the private capital market in Mexico?

There is always room for improvement in this area; for example, we are working with the authorities to see how we can develop greater funds, particularly venture capital or impact investments through development banks or various other funds. AMEXCAP will definitely play an important role in this regard. We are also working on bringing more investors to the market, for example trying to show insurance companies how they can complement their investment portfolios with more alternative investments to increase returns and reduce volatility. There are also opportunities on making things easier for investors, such as certain taxation rules, and other administrative requirements. We also trying to work with authorities as sector-specific expert consultants to align our objectives with those of the current administration. Finally, there is opportunity to increase the awareness level of the industry. We are working with universities, for example, to establish a graduate program related to private equity in general, and we have also done a number of studies and papers demonstrating the impact this industry has in job creation and in the overall economy.