Banking Services & Ripped Pesos

By Ruth Clarke

Touting itself as Mexico’s “first bank for foreign residents,” BANCOMER has recently initiated Preferred Customers’ Unit—PCU, to provide service for its foreign customers in English and on-line. Branches in the Golden Zone (Camarón Sábalo #333) and Centro (Olas Altas #67) both have staff that is fluent in English. If you prefer to go on-line, their website (www.bancomer.com.mx) is efficient and user-friendly. Once you get your user ID you can access your bank account, transfer funds and pay utility bills.

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Local media report that businesses here are refusing to accept ripped, mutilated or


marked-up peso bills. Only banks will accept deteriorated bills, according to Dan Moreno, reporter for El Debate, who also writes that banks will only accept them from 9 am until 12 noon each day. The Bank of Mexico is going to great lengths to publicize this decision. They claim that the bills must retain 80 percent of their original size and integrity. Suffering most from deterioration are the 20 peso bills. The Bank of Mexico estimates that as of March 1, 2009, there were 27.55 million bills in circulation. In recent years, to strengthen it and lengthen its lifespan, plastic has been added to the composition of the bill, and will no doubt be incorporated into the next most popular denominations.

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