ABSTRACT
The history of the Pacific Coast region, as well as other regions such as the Northeast 1 have pointed out the key roles played in early development by personal savings and investment, especially by merchants, and the informal networks created among residents to mobilize savings. As time progresses, we see the broadening of investment opportunities into non-export industries (import-substituting, residentiary, footloose) and the dispersion of savings into the hands of labor and capitalists engaged in productive activity. The consequence of this broadened base of both investment and saving is the need for more formalized, less personal means of accumulating savings and mobilizing them to profitable opportunities.
