Employees walk past the UBS logo in Zurich (file photo, 2012). The bank itself is not accused of wrongdoing in the reports. (Photo: AFP / Fabrice Coffrini)

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POLITICS · MEXICO

Mexico’s Financial Intelligence Unit (UIF), the anti-money-laundering office of the Finance Ministry, is investigating Amílcar Olán, according to the news site Latinus. Olán is a Tabasco businessman and a close friend of former president López Obrador’s sons.

Published late on 1 October, the report says the UIF found a Swiss investment account holding about €72 million (about US$81 million). The UIF has not confirmed the file, and Olán has not responded.

What the Reported UIF File Contains

Reporter Mario Gutiérrez Vega wrote that Latinus had access to the inquiry, opened weeks ago. Its central finding is an active equity portfolio at UBS Switzerland AG.

When the UIF obtained the data, the balance was €72,039,066.74 (about US$81.2 million). That was then worth 1.433 billion pesos (about US$78 million at 18.28 pesos per dollar). Latinus founder Carlos Loret de Mola repeated the figures in his El Universal column on 2 October.

Reported UBS account balance compared with Olán's declared annual income, rent and school fees, in million pesos. Source: Latinus / El Universal, 1–2 Oct 2026.

According to the column, the UIF has mapped Olán’s government contracts, the agencies that paid him and which recipient firms were genuine or shell companies. It also lists alleged front men, relatives, cash, shares and property.

Life in Ticino

Latinus reports that Olán declared an annual income of 17.9 million pesos (about US$979,000) to obtain long-term residence in Ticino, Switzerland. He moved there with his family in September 2025.

He allegedly paid rent equal to 200,000 pesos a month (about US$10,900), partly through his sister. His two children attend an international school costing 1.5 million pesos (about US$82,000).

TV Azteca reported that transfers to the Swiss bank were made by two of his siblings. Its reporter had earlier found Olán in Lugano, as covered in Mexico: Sheinbaum Opens Door to Probe of AMLO-Linked Businessman Amílcar Olán.

Head of a Network, the Column Says

Some headlines described Olán as the “head” of a criminal group. In the column, the word refers to the UIF’s link chart, which reportedly places Olán at the centre of the network.

Latinus calls that circle “El Clan”. Andrés Manuel López Beltrán, the former president’s son, is not named in the file, Loret de Mola wrote.

Expansión, citing Latinus, says his brother Luis Alberto was flagged as a link to an alleged Jalisco cartel member. That person is suspected of fuel smuggling, and the claim remains unproven.

Earlier reporting tied Olán’s firms to state oil firm Pemex, the Dos Bocas refinery and the army, Expansión noted. It also cites medicine sales and ballast for the Maya and Interoceanic trains. The family faced other scrutiny in US Revokes Visa of López Obrador’s Son, Who Fires Back at Trump.

What Is Not Yet Known

The UIF has issued no statement, and TV Azteca noted that the file’s existence and scope remain publicly unconfirmed. All figures come from one outlet’s access to documents, repeated by others.

Days earlier, Attorney General Ernestina Godoy said there was no arrest warrant for Olán, TV Azteca reported. On 28 September President Sheinbaum said the federal prosecutor should act if there is evidence.

Whether the UIF freezes accounts, files a complaint or seeks Swiss cooperation is still open.

Sources: Latinus (Mario Gutiérrez Vega, 1 Oct 2026); El Universal (Carlos Loret de Mola column, 2 Oct 2026); Expansión Política (1 Oct 2026); TV Azteca (2 Oct 2026); El Informador (2 Oct 2026). Exchange rates: open.er-api.com, 2 Oct 2026.

Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief · Editorial standards · Report an error