Now I Need Bitcoin: A Banking Breakdown in Mexico

This is simply a communicative astir a dumb American traveling successful Mexico (me), a con man’s effort to hustle pesos from tourists and the limitations of accepted banking.

It begins with a breached ATM.

Recently I traveled to Mexico City. I cognize little Spanish than the mean toddler. On my precise archetypal time successful Mexico, astatine the ATM, I inserted my paper … and the instrumentality swallowed it. I pressed the reddish cancel button. Nothing. I pressed much buttons astatine random. Nothing. I spoke to a woman wrong the bank, who couldn’t recognize a connection I was saying (not her fault), and aft we recovered a translator, she explained that this ATM was retired of order, and that if I understood Spanish, I would person work the informing connection connected the screen. (Again, this is besides connected me. We’re successful Mexico, and it’s my responsibility I don’t talk the language.)

I’d person to interaction my bank, Fidelity, to get a caller debit paper mailed to me.

I would beryllium successful Mexico for the adjacent 2 weeks, and intelligibly I’d request much cash. So I called Fidelity to cancel my paper and nonstop maine a caller one.

Problem 1: Fidelity says they would happily nonstop maine a caller card, but I would request to telephone a antithetic company, Visa Emergency Card Services, to person a caller 1 sent. Fidelity handles my checking, but seemingly they outsource things similar debit cards.

Problem 2: Visa tells maine they request to authorize that I’m really a Fidelity customer, and this could instrumentality immoderate time. So I wait. In the meantime I can’t get cash.

I perceive thing from Visa for 2 days. I inactive person nary currency speech from the pesos that a person lent me.

Problem 3: Finally Visa tells maine that I would really request to telephone “PNC Bank,” due to the fact that PNC Bank – different spouse of Fidelity’s – is really the radical that handles the back-end of the checking. Or something.

I had ne'er heard of PNC Bank. I’ve been a Fidelity lawsuit for implicit a decade, and I person ne'er seen the words PNC Bank connected my debit card, oregon connected my banking statements, oregon connected my log-in screen.

Problem 4: “Hi, convey you for calling PNC bank,” the rep said. “Can I person your relationship number?”

“I person nary idea,” I said. “I’m a Fidelity customer, and they told maine to telephone you.”

The PNC rep checks her computer, and past tells maine that no, successful fact, I’m not a customer, and that I should telephone Fidelity.

I telephone backmost Fidelity. The Fidelity rep tells maine that, nope, I ne'er should person called PNC Bank. They accidental that I had been misinformed, and that I request to telephone Visa.

Problem 5: Again I telephone Visa. They archer maine they’ve been trying to scope Fidelity.

“Do you cognize the telephone fig for Fidelity?” The Visa cause asked me.

“I’m the customer! Don’t you cognize the number?”

“One second, sir,” said Visa, who puts maine connected clasp to find the number. Soon helium comes back. “I person Fidelity connected the line,” helium said, truthful present the 3 of america our conferenced in.

“Can I person your relationship number?” The Fidelity rep asked.

“Sir … tin you repetition that? I’m not seeing that successful my records.”

That’s bizarre. I repetition the number.

“Are you definite you’re a subordinate of Fidelity Kansas City?” The rep asked.

“This is the section subdivision of Fidelity successful Kansas City. Are you a subordinate here?”

Apparently the Visa rep had not called the superior Fidelity fig – which they should cognize – but alternatively a random branch.

Problems 6, 7, 8, 9 … 37: I’ll skip up and summarize the flurry of calls. This benignant of clumsy miscommunication – betwixt banking partners that enactment together, each nether the Fidelity umbrella – happened for days. I walk hours connected the telephone with Visa, Fidelity and PNC Bank.

By present I’ve near Mexico City, and I’m successful a tiny formation town, Sayulita, that for the astir portion does not judge recognition cards. Cash is king. My American friends person each returned home, I’m traveling solo, and I person nary mode to get cash. I’m counting connected that debit paper from Fidelity. Or Visa. Or PNC bank.

In the expansive strategy of things, of course, this is rather virtually a first-world problem. I americium a privileged American who yet has entree to resources, and I knew my pinch was temporary. Millions of radical person existent and wrenching problems; I lone person insignificant headaches.

But the headache seems lifted erstwhile I yet get Visa and Fidelity connected the telephone together. The Fidelity rep, James, assures the Visa rep that I americium successful information a customer, and that Fidelity does successful information authorize Visa to nonstop maine a debit card. James provides his worker ID number. James is making this happen. James is the best. (Most reps I spoke to were great. The nonaccomplishment was not 1 of quality competence; the nonaccomplishment was a creaky strategy held unneurotic by duct tape.)

“So bash you person everything I need?” I asked the Visa rep.

Problem 38: Another time passes. I get a connection that I request to telephone backmost Visa, due to the fact that there’s been different snag. Visa says they request much accusation from Fidelity to message maine the card, due to the fact that they’re not definite if it should beryllium printed arsenic “Jeff Wilser” oregon “Jeffrey Wilser” oregon “Jeff J. Wilser” oregon “Jeffrey J. Wilser.” This brought everything to a halt.

More calls, much waiting connected hold, much connecting Fidelity and Visa. Finally they authorize the paper to beryllium sent.

It’s guaranteed to get to maine successful Sayulita, via DHL precedence mail, connected Friday. For perspective, I arrived successful Mexico the anterior Thursday. For a week I’ve been incapable to get cash.

Friday comes … nary paper arrives. It was held up successful customs.

But hopefully DHL would present it connected Saturday? Nope, DHL doesn’t enactment weekends successful Mexico.

Now I’m hopeless for cash. I telephone Visa and inquire if they tin bash an exigency ligament transfer. They said they’d beryllium blessed to, but they request to get support from Fidelity. Now I’m feeling PTSD.

Eventually Visa gets Fidelity connected the line. I’m conferenced in.

“I o.k. the ligament transfer,’ the Fidelity rep said.

“We’re going to request your authorization code,” said Visa.

“What code?” The Fidelity rep is confused.

“We request a codification to process this,” said Visa.

“One second,” said Fidelity.

Fidelity puts maine connected clasp and tries to hunt down this “access code” that Visa needs. I consciousness atrocious for the Fidelity rep. I consciousness atrocious for the Visa rep. It’s a Saturday afternoon, and each of america would alternatively beryllium doing thing else. I spell backmost to waiting connected hold, and by present the clasp euphony is the soundtrack to my life.

The Fidelity rep is back. He can’t find the needed code. He has ne'er heard of this code. He asks astir to his Fidelity colleagues and nary of them knew of immoderate specified code.

Then the Visa rep realizes that it mightiness beryllium a moot constituent – to authorize a ligament transfer, they’d really request support from different entity … PNC Bank.

I virtually laughter retired loud.

“PNC Bank?” I asked. “Okay. Great. Can we get PNC Bank to o.k. this?”

Problem 39: PNC Bank, oregon astatine slightest the applicable section from PNC Bank, is closed for the weekend.

The Fidelity rep says helium feels atrocious for me, and I judge him. We’ve present been connected the telephone for an hour, helium has heard my bittersweet small story, and he’s arsenic amazed arsenic I americium that we’re routed backmost to this enigmatic PNC Bank.

But wait! Maybe there’s a clever solution aft all. I besides person a recognition paper from Fidelity, but erstwhile again, this recognition paper is operated by a 3rd enactment (Elan Financial Services.) My recognition paper is not acceptable up to beryllium utilized astatine ATMs; I don’t person a pin. What if Fidelity could alteration this, and fto maine usage the recognition paper successful the ATM?

“That mightiness work,” the Fidelity rep said. “Let maine look into it.”

I hold connected hold. (In 2 weeks successful Mexico, I spent much clip connected clasp than I did connected the beach.)

The bully quality is that, yes, my Visa recognition paper tin beryllium turned into a paper that works astatine an ATM. All they request to bash is springiness maine a pin. The atrocious quality is that they tin lone bash this by sending the pin done the mail.

This is not a joke. They request to message the pin. In this epoch of cryptography, the pin tin lone beryllium delivered via parcel, meaning their tech has not innovated since the days of Benjamin Franklin.

“So there’s thing we tin do?” I asked him. “There’s nary mode I tin get cash?”

“The strategy broke down,” I told him.

Again helium apologizes, and helium fundamentally agrees with me. I privation to underline that each idiosyncratic I spoke to was competent and courteous – this isn’t their fault. (I should adhd that I’ve mostly been a blessed Fidelity customer; their lawsuit work is usually top-notch. And I contacted Fidelity a fewer weeks aboriginal to inquire if they would similar to remark for this story; extracurricular of an email apology that looked a spot similar a signifier letter, they declined.)

Now here’s wherever bitcoin enters the story.

Kidding. I don’t cognize that cryptocurrency – astatine slightest with today’s infrastructure – would person cracked my problem. Taco stands successful Sayulita bash not judge bitcoin oregon shiba. And this is not El Salvador. Perhaps I could person utilized thing similar LocalBitcoins to swap bitcoin (I ain some) for pesos. Maybe that could person worked.

But I bash cognize that erstwhile radical successful the U.S. say, “crypto makes nary sense, due to the fact that my recognition paper works conscionable fine,” that’s lone portion of the story. Yes, it works “just fine” erstwhile everything runs smoothly. It works “just fine” if you don’t caput paying the fees, whether straight oregon indirectly. It works “just fine” erstwhile nary different countries are involved. But erstwhile that bubble is pierced? The banks can’t adjacent speech to themselves.

Now this is wherever the con antheral enters the story.

I’m down to my last 50 pesos. That’s the equivalent of astir $2.50.

I person 1 past determination to make.

I caput to a gringo tourer bar, and I bid a brew with my past 50 pesos. (Luckily, beers are cheap.)

It’s a Saturday afternoon. College shot is playing. I spot a tipsy American pistillate who’s cheering for Oklahoma. So present I’m cheering for Oklahoma. I went to assemblage astatine The University of Texas; Oklahoma is our sworn enemy.

Soon the woman and I are chatting. We’re flirting. And present I consciousness similar a con man. “So, I person a brainsick question,” I said, smiling, “but I’m wondering if you tin assistance me…”

I archer her my plight, oregon astatine slightest a highly condensed version, and I inquire her if I tin Venmo her U.S. dollars successful speech for pesos. She agrees. Soon I person a stack of 1,000 pesos, I consciousness flush with cash, and aboriginal I repetition the aforesaid instrumentality with different tipsy American tourist. Thanks to this mini-breakdown of the banking system, I’ve turned into a pathetic peso-hustler.

More flirting, much hustling, much pesos. Soon I tin bargain each the tacos and beers I want. And 2 weeks aft I landed successful Mexico, virtually the time earlier I alert backmost to the United States, erstwhile it is nary longer needed … DHL delivers my caller debit card.