Tijuana’s chamber of commerce has formally broken ties with the city’s top business umbrella group, accusing its leadership of improperly withholding funds collected through Mexico’s mandatory business registry.
Canaco-Servytur Tijuana, the local chapter of Mexico’s national chamber of commerce and services, announced its split from the Consejo Coordinador Empresarial (CCE), or Business Coordinating Council. Canaco president Olivaldo Paz Gómez said the CCE, led by president Roberto Lyle Fritch, has retained funds collected through the Sistema de Información Empresarial Mexicano (SIEM), the federal business registry that all commercial establishments in Mexico must join.
Paz Gómez said the withheld amounts have been documented but did not disclose the total sum in dispute. The SIEM registry generates fees paid by businesses across the country, and Canaco chapters are responsible for administering those registrations at the local level.
CCE Calls for Dialogue
The CCE, for its part, has called for dialogue to resolve the conflict. Lyle Fritch, who also appeared at a Tijuana city government event earlier this month alongside other business leaders, has not publicly disputed the existence of the withheld funds. The CCE serves as a coordinating body for multiple business chambers and industry groups in Tijuana.
The split is notable because both organizations play key roles in trade advocacy, regulatory coordination, and business services in one of Mexico’s largest border economies. Canaco-Servytur represents thousands of commercial and service-sector businesses, while the CCE functions as the primary interface between the private sector and local government.
What SIEM Means for Business Owners
Any business operating in Mexico is required by law to register with SIEM. Registration fees vary by business size but typically range from roughly 300 to 750 pesos (about $15 to $38 USD). Local Canaco chapters collect these fees and are supposed to use a portion for business development programs and services. A dispute over how those funds flow between Canaco and the CCE could affect the services available to registered businesses in the Tijuana area.
The fracture comes at a sensitive moment for Tijuana’s business community. Cross-border commerce between Tijuana and San Diego faces ongoing uncertainty from U.S. tariff pressures. A unified private sector voice has been considered essential for lobbying state and federal authorities on trade, infrastructure, and regulatory issues.
As of late April, no formal mediation process has been announced. Whether the two organizations can reconcile or will operate independently going forward remains an open question for Tijuana’s commercial sector.
The dispute was first reported by Zeta Tijuana.