Afore Coppel to launch in Apr with eye on transfer market

Mexican pension fund manager Afore Coppel plans to start operations next month in the 500 stores of parent company and retailer Grupo Coppel, local daily El Financiero reported. Afore Coppel sees a potential market in about 60% of the 6 million people who frequent Coppel retail outlets, group chairman and CEO Enrique Coppel told the paper. The company plans to focus on wooing consumers away from rival Afore pension companies rather than signing up people new to the system, he said. Last year pension regulator Consar approved regulations making it easier for people to move their accounts from a more expensive Afore to a cheaper company. The rules favor new entrants like MetLife Afore which launched operations with low commission structures aimed at taking clients from more established rivals. Coppel has also requested a banking license to provide a broader range of financial products to its clients. Coppel wants to repeat the success of rival retail and financial services group Grupo Elektra, which during the last three years has opened a bank, Afore pension fund manager and insurance company targeting its client base of low-income consumers.