Sheinbaum’s great digital turn
President Claudia Sheinbaum has just put an ambitious goal on the table: she wants Mexico to leave cash behind. It is not just a declaration of intent. It is a complete change of scenario for the country’s economy.
His administration has a clear objective: digitalize the economy. The final goal is for physical money to be used less and for payments to migrate, en masse, to cell phones. It sounds like the future, but they are already moving the pieces.
A masterstroke for banking
How do you plan to achieve it? With a measure that could be revolutionary. One of the key proposals is to allow bank accounts to be opened without the need to first register with the Treasury (SHCP).
Sheinbaum explained it clearly:
“For example, that you can open a bank account without having to register with the Treasury, to formalize the economy… in such a way that people who do not have their RFC can… first become banked and then formalize themselves.”
These are the so-called N2 or N3 accounts, a model that already works in other parts of the world. It is an entrance door. First you put people into the financial system, then you regularize their situation. Simple, but potentially very effective.
And they don’t stop there. The bet has specific deadlines and very tangible objectives.
This same year they want payments at toll booths and gas stations to be made only by electronic means. The bill and the coin would be left out of the equation.
“Our goal is also that this year, the booths will be paid electronically, without cash, and also the gas stations, towards the end of 2026,” said Sheinbaum.
This is not empty political theater. They are instructions with an expiration date. If they achieve this, we would be facing a profound transformation in how millions of Mexicans interact with their money on a daily basis.
The message is clear: the current government sees technology as the key to modernizing the economy and including those who have always been on the margins of the financial system. Now it’s time to see if reality follows the script.




