NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

By Ben Edwards

The government’s response to the lack of financial inclusion is to build thousands of new banks throughout the country, but it faces a big challenge in weaning potential customers away from the black economy.

Deep in the jungles of Mexico’s southern state of Chiapas, not far from the Guatemalan border, the roughly 10,000 inhabitants of the town of Nueva Palestina are completely cut off from the country’s financial system. The nearest bank is more than 50 miles away. You can’t carry out transactions with a bank card. If you need to settle any bills, you have to pay in cash.

Photo courtesy of Alexis Tostado.