What SPEI is
SPEI, the Sistema de Pagos Electrónicos Interbancarios, is the payment system of Banco de México for transfers in pesos between accounts at different financial institutions. It began operating in 2004, runs around the clock every day, and settles each transfer in real time.
Banks and other regulated financial institutions take part, directly or as indirect participants. Accounts are addressed by their CLABE, the 18-digit standard account number, and every transfer has a tracking key and an electronic proof of payment, the CEP, from Banco de México. Banks, fintechs and companies paying people in Mexico use it, which is why it is the peso rail our accounts and payouts modules connect to.
What it does in your platform
Accounts & IBANs
Where your partner offers Mexican accounts, customers receive pesos on their CLABE and send transfers to any other SPEI account, at any hour of any day.
Payouts
Pays out pesos to Mexican bank accounts in real time, every day of the week. Each payout has a tracking key, and its proof of payment, the CEP, can be retrieved from Banco de México.
How the connection works
SPEI is reached through a participant: a Mexican bank or regulated institution, directly or through a partner or payout network that works with one. The module sends payouts through that partner's API and reads back each result.
A payout is due
A courier in Mexico is owed pesos for the week. The module screens the payout and holds the amount in the ledger.
The account is named
The payout goes to the courier's CLABE, which identifies the bank and the account in one number, with a check digit at the end.
The participant sends it
Your partner submits the transfer to SPEI with a tracking key, the clave de rastreo.
Settled in real time
The transfer settles between the two institutions at Banco de México, and the courier's bank credits the account. The partner's update closes the payout in the ledger.
With a proof
The CEP, Banco de México's electronic proof of payment, can be retrieved with the tracking key and the payment's details, for the courier or for your auditors.
Next to other rails
SPEI carries pesos inside Mexico. The Payouts module sends dollars inside the US over ACH, reais over PIX and euros over SEPA, uses SWIFT where no local rail reaches, and picks the rail for each payout by country, currency and amount.
Where a payout network also reaches Mexico, it can be a second route if your SPEI partner is down. Changing the participant or partner later changes a connector; your app and the ledger stay the same.
When SPEI fits best
A strong fit when
- You pay sellers, couriers or contractors in Mexico.
- Payouts need to land in real time, any day of the week.
- You want a proof of payment that recipients and auditors can check with Banco de México.
Also worth a look
- A payout network that reaches Mexico, if you have no SPEI partner of your own.
- ACH or SWIFT for recipients who are paid in US dollars.
How we get you live
The participant
We help you get SPEI access through a Mexican bank or regulated institution, or a payout network that reaches it.
The routing
We set with you which payouts go over SPEI, their limits and the approvals they need.
The keys
The partner's credentials and webhook secrets go into your platform's secrets and nowhere else.
A full test run
Payouts and failures are tested in the partner's test environment where it has one, then a first live transfer is followed to its CEP and into the ledger.
