The Mexican Government is close to approving a law aimed at removing the use of cash
I keep coming back to that number: 80 to 90 percent of payments in Mexico are still cash. Mexico is a cash-first country. Huge chunks of the population rely on coins and bills for everything from street food to rent, so the idea of a quick digital switch feels unrealistic. The government says this is about modernization, financial inclusion, and fighting tax evasion, but I suspect the real story is about control. When every transaction leaves a digital footprint, the state sees everything. That's a trade-off we're only beginning to understand.
What fascinates me is the speed. The law went from introduction to near-approval in weeks. That speed suggests a top-down push, and I worry about what happens when people are still blinking. I'd want to know what happens to the millions who don't have bank accounts or smartphones. Are they just expected to catch up? And what about the informal economy that keeps the country running? You can't simply code your way around that.
I'm not saying digital payments are bad. They're convenient, and they're probably inevitable. But banning cash is a different beast. It's a declaration that physical money is obsolete, and I think we should be honest about the social costs before we celebrate that. Mexico could be a test case for the rest of the world, and I'm not sure we're paying attention to the right details.