"Analysis of ROSCAs (rotating savings and credit associations) has been virtually absent from the sociological and anthropological literature for decades. This book not only revives important
concepts in that area but also illustrates how such associations are built into current society. It will be the cornerstone of future analysis and hypothesis-building about confianza, new types
of agency, and the integrative quality of informal associations."
They are known as cundinas or tandas in Mexico, and for many people these local savings-and-loan operations play an indispensable role in the struggle to succeed in today's transborder economy.
With this extensively researched book, Carlos Velez-Ibanez updates and expands upon his major 1983 study of ROSCAs, incorporating new data that reflect the explosion of Mexican-origin
populations in the United States. Much more than a study of one economic phenomenon though, the book examines the way in which these practices are part of great transnational economies and how
these populations engage in---and suffer through---the twenty-first century global economy.
