Modern Chinese banking networks during the Republican Era

Using a novel dataset of bank boards, this study reconstructs the Chinese banking network in the 1930s. The core of the sector was a cluster of more than 100 banks linked through a dense network of interlocking directorates, including large core banks under the control of the national government. We trace the shape, structure, and development of links within this network from 1933 to 1936 and demonstrate the persistence of this web despite the high volatility of links and directors. New entrants were closely linked to established banks, often through directors involved with multiple institutions. Those directors also formed part of the national government’s growing influence over the sector through links with publicly owned banks. This study demonstrates that despite high volatility and uncertainty, the domestic financial sector wove a close web of interdependence, which the government then used to reinforce control gained from nationalising core banks.