Five questions Eric Hovde must answer now that news has emerged that his bank is working with a Mexican bank long rumored to have ties to the cartel – WisPolitics

MADISON, Wis. — Yesterday, Eric Hovde dodged questions from reporters in La Crosse about his bank’s business dealings with Banco Azteca, a Mexican bank long said to have ties to the cartel.

Last week, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported that in December 2023, Banco Azteca transferred $26 million in cash across the U.S.-Mexico border directly to Eric Hovde’s bank in California.

Eric Hovde owes Wisconsities the answers:

1. In 2021, Banco Azteca had no correspondent banks in the United States, having been shut down over “risk and security compliance” concerns. Why did Hovde decide to accept $26 million in cash flown across the border from them in 2023?
2. Is Hovde concerned about doing business with Banco Azteca, given the bank’s alleged ties to Mexican drug cartels, including the Sinaloa cartel?
3. Does Hovde plan to continue doing business with Banco Azteca and other unknown foreign banks and governments, from which he has taken over $100 million?
4. Did yesterday’s announcement by the Ministry of Finance that it would take tougher action against companies with ties to drug cartels make Eric Hovde doubt his business relationship with Banco Azteca?
5. What other foreign entities does his bank do business with? China? Russia? Iran?