Commercial Banks and Industrial Finance in England and Wales, 1860-1913

This is fundamental reading in British (and European) banking history, and also a very informative and stimulating source for economic and business historian alike.

Auteur
Michael Collins is Professor of Financial History at the University of Leeds, and author of a number of books on the history of banking in the UK, and journal articles on different aspects of monetary history. Mae Baker is Senior Lecturer in Accounting and Finance at the University of Leeds. She is author of a number of journal articles on different aspects of monetary history.

Texte du rabat

Before 1914, the City of London was the premier international financial centre. However, following the disruption of the world markets caused by World War I and the Great Depression of the 1930s, other industrial nations quickly and effectively challenged Britain's influence. Critics of the banks claim that, even before 1914, there were serious deficiencies in the financial provision provided by banks to the domestic industrial sector, and that these deficiencies handicapped Britain's competitive advantage in world markets, leading to the decline of their influence and power. This book examines these claims, and bringing to bear important new data that presents the debate in a novel and revealing framework, expounds an economic rationale for historical bank behaviour.

Contenu

1. The Relationship between Finance and Industry in Britain; 2. Comparative European Banking Developments; 3. Relationship Banking and Transaction Banking: Conceptual Issues; 4. Trends in Commercial Bank Liabilities; 5. The Impact of Financial Crises on Commercial Bank Behaviour; 6. Bank Mergers and the Impact on Asset Structures, 1860-1913; 7. Contemporary Opinion on Bank Lending; 8. Professionalization, Organization, and Control; 9. The Nature of Commercial Banks' Industrial Loans; 10. Loan Refusals; 11. Business Clients' Financial Distress; 12. Conclusion; Appendices