Slow Capitalism in Latin America

Carlos Marichal’s Slow Capitalism in Latin America describes the birth of banking as an essential chapter in the history of the economic development of Latin America. He argues that this experience should not be viewed as a story of failure, but as an expression of a process of “slow capitalism.” The book expands comparative economic history during the nineteenth century by focusing on developing nations of the periphery rather than on the more economically advanced nations. Piecing together case studies from Latin America, Marichal offers a view of credit markets and early banks from the late colonial era through the golden age of globalization to the First World War. The author provides a pioneering history of the institutional frameworks of finance and key banking enterprises that broadens traditional views of economic development from a comparative perspective. This title is also available as Open Access on Cambridge Core.

Carlos Marichal is Professor at the Centre for Historical Studies at El Colegio de México. He has published twenty books on financial and economic history, two of which were awarded prizes from the Economic History Association of the United States and the Spanish Economic History Association. He is a leading authority on the history of debt and finance in Latin America.