María Ariza

BIVA is continuously working to develop a strong ecosystem for sustainable finance in Mexico.

What were BIVA’s greatest achievements in Mexico throughout 2022?

2022 was a challenging year for markets. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, as well as supply chain disruptions derived from the pandemic, triggered a series of price shocks that affected the functionality of the world economy. Despite the challenging environment, BIVA had significant advances in positioning itself as a preferred alternative for market participants. We have brought to market more than 25 new issuers, nine in 2022. Also, 65% of all new debt instruments in the Mexican market were issued at BIVA. Overall, in our four years in the market we have helped issuers finance a total of USD19 billion in the Mexican equity and debt markets. All IPOs this year in the Mexican market were done at BIVA. We listed one Fibra E (energy infrastructure trust) and one FIBRA (infrastructure and real estate trust). In addition, all newcomers into the market are choosing BIVA as their stock exchange. In addition, operations in the secondary equity market increased by 10.6% from a year earlier. Average daily operated volume in 2022 is now close to USD1.1 billion. Moreover, in 2022 we started competing on a more level playing field thanks to the implementation of the regulation on Best Execution. After three months of the entry into force of this regulation, BIVA’s market share of the volume operated in the Mexican market increased to 17% (from 9%, previously). Through our educational arm, Instituto BIVA, we have produced close to 200 learning experiences, including courses, workshops, conferences, webinars, and masterclasses aimed at increasing financial education at different levels. In 2022, we consolidated our position as the sustainable stock exchange in Mexico. We are constantly working on the development of a strong ecosystem for sustainable finance in Mexico that is compliant with international best practices and contributes to the transformation to a low-carbon economy.

In what ways is BIVA continuing to promote sustainability and ESG practices within the stock exchange?

One of our priorities at BIVA is to enhance the ESG ecosystem in Mexico. We focus on creating solutions to develop the market efficiently. In particular, we promote the standardization of taxonomies, frameworks and evaluations to improve transparency and communication among market participants. This has meant that more than a third of the long-term debt issued in BIVA complies with environmental, social, and governance principles. We continue to guide companies from an early stage on their transformation towards integrating and measuring ESG values. Our program, BIVA 360° Sostenible, links companies with experts and specialized allies to streamline the process and equip them with the tools they need before raising capital under an ESG framework. We have also developed a technological platform that concentrates issuers’ ESG information in one place. This allows issuers and investors to have access to standardize data based on the main international and local standards, such as SASB, GRI, PRI, AMAFORE, GRESB, and so on. Based on our close interaction with clients, we have spotted the need to develop sustainability skills and talent. This encouraged us to create the Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO) Accelerated Program that aims to elevate ESG standards in Mexican companies. We want to train as many issuers as possible to reach critical mass and have system-wide impact in the local market. At BIVA we have been very strong advocates of gender equality. We sponsor research and recognize publicly organizations who stand out on practices like the inclusion of women in boards or at decision-making positions. In the next few years, we are moving one step forward with our recently approved Gender Equality Questionnaire. Through this questionnaire we will be able to collect information about companies’ practices regarding women’s entry into the work force, policies for career advancement and equal pay. All of these will be included as part of BIVA’s internal regulations applicable to all issuers listed at BIVA. The information obtained through this questionnaire will be made public starting in 2026.