Translate / Traducir

El Banco de Veracruz

This is not strictly paper money but is included here as other bonos de caja appear in catalogues and this note, though uncatalogued, is represented in the Banco de México collection by a numbered, unissued noteCNBanxico #7129.

In 1889 Secretario de Hacienda Dublán handed out seven concessions for bancos agrícolas e industriales in San Luis Potosí, Jalisco, Guanajuato, Puebla, Veracruz, Zacatecas and Yucatán. The Veracruz concession, dated 14 August 1889, to establish a bank in Orizaba, went to an American(?), George Wilson, while the others went to prominent Mexican businessmen. These were not banks of issue but were authorised to issue bonos de caja.

Banco de Veracruz 1 specimen

Banco de Veracruz 1 specimen reverse

Banco de Veracruz 1

Banco de Veracruz 1 reverse

  series from to total
number
total
value
 
$1 A 000001 050000 50,000 $  50,000 includes number 042406
overprinted NO VALUE
B 000001 100000 100,000
100,000  

 

Wilson had Bradbury Wilkinson and Company prepare proofs and possibly printed notes. Series A is datelined Alvarado (a port 70 kilometres south of Veracruz), 1 September 1890 and Series B is datelined Tonala (a port in the state of Chiapas, at the end of the railway), 1 October 1890. Both have the facsimile signatures of George Wilson as manager and Charles R. Excell as secretary.

George Wilson

[if same peson] G. A. Wilson was general manager of the Interoceanic railroad. He handed in his notice in September 1889, to take effect from 18 February 1890The Two Republics, 14 September 1889)

sig Wilson
Charles R. Excell sig Banco de Veracruz cajero

 

On the reverse are printed six clauses of Article 4 (13) of the bank’s concession, detailing the conditions:

ART. XIII. Emitir bonos de caja reembolsables á plazos, que podrán variar entre un mes y tres años, bajo las condiciones siguientes:
A. Estos bonos serán al portador ó nominativos, y en este caso transmisibles por simple endoso.
B. El Banco podrá señalarles un interés, cuyo tipo y plazos de pago determinará el Consejo de Administración, pero el pago deberá efectuarse en numerario.
C. El Banco sólo podrá emitir estos bonos mediante la entrega que se le haga, en efectivo, de su valor nominal á la par.
D. No se podrán expedir bonos de caja más que por una cantidad igual al monto de la existencia en caja, en dinero efectivo, y al del valor de las obligaciones en cartera.
E. Á la responsabilidad que el Banco contraiga por sus bonos de caja, quedarán afectos el importe del capital social y el de las obligaciones que menciona en su última parte la fracción anterior.

A company was registered in London, England in July 1890 to acquire the concessionEl Siglo Diez y Nueve, 7 July 1890, and the bank negotiated contracts to establish branches with the state governments in ChiapasPeriódico Oficial, Chiapas, 22 November 1889, VeracruzEl Diario del Hogar, 31 December 1890, OaxacaEl Diario del Hogar, 10 February 1891 and TabascoEl Siglo Diez y Nueve, 20 May 1891, but on 1 May 1892 the company asked for its concession to be rescindedEl Siglo Diez y Nueve, 19 May 1891: La Voz de México, 21 May 1891.

It is strange that this bono should be for such a small amount as a peso fuerte.