Investments & savings

Four safe vehicles, four different profiles

The block above compares bank promissory notes (BBVA, Banorte, Santander), CETES bought direct at cetesdirecto.com, USD/MXN, and physical gold vs. ETF, using official Banxico rates. Numbers refresh every 30 minutes; yields shown are gross — subtract ISR (1.04% on promissory-note balances, federal withholding on CETES) before counting real gain.

For conservative profiles, CETES at 28/91/182/364 days remain the comparison floor. For longer horizons or FX hedging, USD/MXN or gold play a different role — but monthly volatility can wipe out the CETES gap if you don't sit through the term.

Before moving the money

• Keep an emergency fund of 3-6 months of fixed expenses. If personal loan or credit card debt with CAT >30% is still on the table, settle that first (use refinancing if it helps).
• A promissory note's effective yield runs ~3-5 points below a CETE of the same term — banks bake the spread into the margin.
• Physical gold means custody and a buy-sell spread; ETFs (IAU, GLD) track price more cleanly but pay ISR on each exit.
• If you just want the basics, the financial glossary covers CETES, TIIE, CAT, Buró and SOFOM with examples.

To go deeper

The editorial guides cover CETES taxation, peso dynamics, and why Banxico lags the Fed on rate cuts. To compare where to open accounts (Nu, BBVA, Banorte), see bank-vs-bank comparisons.