The crisis of 1943

In 1943, during the Second World War, Mexico was again faced with a silver crisis (There was a combination of reasons: anticipation of a rise in the price of silver; the Mexican government’s agreement to sell practically its entire silver production to the United States for its military industry; and a boom in the Mexican and US jewellery industries). On 21 August it imposed a heavy export tax on silver products, to make it unprofitable to melt down silver coins to ship as bullion, and temporarily suspended a contract which promised all surplus silver production to the United States. However because of a shortage of fractional coinage, especially the fifty centavos denomination, it was compelled to authorise banks to issue cheques with printed denominations of twenty-five and fifty centavos. All these issues were quickly withdrawn.

Cámara Nacional de Comercio

A 50c cheque drawn on the Banco del Centro, S. A., dated 3 September, signed by Antonio Díaz Infante Ortuño, the tesorero, and Manuel Gómez Azcárate, the presidente of the Cámara..

Antonio Díaz Infante Ortuño
Manuel Gómez Azcárate was born on 25 December 1898 in Doctor Arroyo, Nuevo León. He died on 26 October 1976 in San Luis Potosí.

Cámara Nacional de Comercio en Pequeño

A variant drawn by the Cámara Nacional de Comercio en Pequeño de San Luis Potosí and signed by Edmundo Durán and L. Bedrosa.

Edmundo Durán
L. Bedrosa