He refused to follow the financial policy of his party in 1862, and delivered a notable speech against the passage of the Legal Tender Act, which made a certain class of treasury notes receivable for all public and private debts.
The paper notes already issued had been constituted by law legal tender for all debts, but in 1868 their power of actual purchase was only 30% compared with that of gold, and by 1870 it had fallen as low as 25%.
Foreign coins were formerly legal tender in the republic, but this has been changed by the exclusion of foreign silver coins and the acceptance of foreign gold coins as a commodity at a fixed value.
Silver and nickel are legal tender for 50 and 20 bolivares respectively.
He gave earnest support to the Legal Tender Act, and the substitution of the national for the state banking system.