IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/egc/wpaper/835.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Delegated Monitors, Large and Small: The Development of Germany's Banking System, 1800-1914

Author

Listed:
  • Timothy W. Guinnane

    (Economic Growth Center, Yale University)

Abstract

Banks play a greater role in the German financial system than in the United States or Britain. Germany's large universal banks are admired by those who advocate bank deregulation in the United States. Others admire the universal banks for their supposed role in corporate governance and industrial finance. Many discussions distort the German Banking system by over- stressing one of several types of banks, and ignore the competition and cooperation between the famous universal banks and other banking groups. Tracing the historical development of the German banking system from the early nineteenth century places the large universal banks in context.

Suggested Citation

  • Timothy W. Guinnane, 2001. "Delegated Monitors, Large and Small: The Development of Germany's Banking System, 1800-1914," Working Papers 835, Economic Growth Center, Yale University.
  • Handle: RePEc:egc:wpaper:835
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.econ.yale.edu/growth_pdf/cdp835.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Sandeep Baliga, 2004. "The Emergence and Persistence of the Anglo-Saxon and German Financial Systems," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 17(1), pages 129-163.
    2. Carlin, Wendy, 1994. "West German Growth and Institutions, 1945-90," CEPR Discussion Papers 896, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    3. Neuburger, Hugh & Stokes, Houston H., 1974. "German Banks and German Growth, 1883–1913: an Empirical View," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 34(3), pages 710-731, September.
    4. Levine, Ross & Zervos, Sara, 1998. "Stock Markets, Banks, and Economic Growth," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 88(3), pages 537-558, June.
    5. Fohlin, Caroline, 1997. "Universal banking networks in pre-war Germany: new evidence from company financial data," Research in Economics, Elsevier, vol. 51(3), pages 201-225, September.
    6. Ross Levine, 1997. "Financial Development and Economic Growth: Views and Agenda," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 35(2), pages 688-726, June.
    7. Chirinko, Robert S. & Elston, Julie Ann, 2006. "Finance, control and profitability: the influence of German banks," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 59(1), pages 69-88, January.
    8. Hans-Werner Sinn, 1999. "The German State Banks," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 1692.
    9. Ross Levine, 2000. "Are bank-based or market-based financial systems better?," Journal Economía Chilena (The Chilean Economy), Central Bank of Chile, vol. 3(1), pages 25-55, April.
    10. Richard Tilly, 1998. "Universal Banking in Historical Perspective," Journal of Institutional and Theoretical Economics (JITE), Mohr Siebeck, Tübingen, vol. 154(1), pages 1-7, March.
    11. Alter, George & Goldin, Claudia & Rotella, Elyce, 1994. "The Savings of Ordinary Americans: The Philadelphia Saving Fund Society in the Mid-Nineteenth Century," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 54(4), pages 735-767, December.
    12. Ghatak, Maitreesh & Guinnane, Timothy W., 1999. "The economics of lending with joint liability: theory and practice," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 60(1), pages 195-228, October.
    13. Gorton, Gary, 1985. "Clearinghouses and the Origin of Central Banking in the United States," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 45(2), pages 277-283, June.
    14. R. Glenn Hubbard, 1998. "Capital-Market Imperfections and Investment," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 36(1), pages 193-225, March.
    15. Gorton, Gary & Schmid, Frank A., 2000. "Universal banking and the performance of German firms," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 58(1-2), pages 29-80.
    16. Timothy W. Guinnane & Ingrid Henriksen, 1997. "Why Danish Credit Co-operatives were so unimportant," Discussion Papers 97-25, University of Copenhagen. Department of Economics.
    17. Timothy W. Guinnane, 2001. "A 'Friend and Advisor': Management, Auditors, and Confidence in Germany's Credit Cooperatives, 1889-1914," Working Papers 824, Economic Growth Center, Yale University.
    18. Crafts,Nicholas & Toniolo,Gianni (ed.), 1996. "Economic Growth in Europe since 1945," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521499644, October.
    19. Peter Temin, 1991. "Inside the Business Enterprise: Historical Perspectives on the Use of Information," NBER Books, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc, number temi91-1.
    20. Abhijit V. Banerjee & Timothy Besley & Timothy W. Guinnane, 1994. "Thy Neighbor's Keeper: The Design of a Credit Cooperative with Theory and a Test," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 109(2), pages 491-515.
    21. Guinnane, Timothy W., 2001. "Cooperatives As Information Machines: German Rural Credit Cooperatives, 1883–1914," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 61(2), pages 366-389, June.
    22. Douglas W. Diamond, 1984. "Financial Intermediation and Delegated Monitoring," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 51(3), pages 393-414.
    23. Fohlin, Caroline, 2002. "Regulation, taxation and the development of the German universal banking system, 1884–1913," European Review of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 6(2), pages 221-254, August.
    24. Cable, John R, 1985. "Capital Market Information and Industrial Performance: The Role of West German Banks," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 95(377), pages 118-132, March.
    25. Naomi R. Lamoreaux & Daniel M. G. Raff, 1995. "Coordination and Information: Historical Perspectives on the Organization of Enterprise," NBER Books, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc, number lamo95-1.
    26. Fohlin, Caroline, 1999. "Universal Banking in Pre-World War I Germany: Model or Myth?," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 36(4), pages 305-343, October.
    27. Michael D. Bordo & Angela Redish, 1996. "A Comparison of the Stability and Efficiency of the Canadian and American Banking Systems 1870-1925," NBER Historical Working Papers 0067, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    28. Diamond, Douglas W, 1991. "Monitoring and Reputation: The Choice between Bank Loans and Directly Placed Debt," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 99(4), pages 689-721, August.
    29. Jeremy Edwards & Sheilagh Ogilvie, 1996. "Universal banks and German industrialization: a reappraisal," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 49(3), pages 427-446, August.
    30. repec:ucp:bkecon:9780226531083 is not listed on IDEAS
    31. White, Eugene Nelson, 1986. "Before the Glass-Steagall Act: An analysis of the investment banking activities of national banks," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 23(1), pages 33-55, January.
    32. Caroline Fohlin, 1999. "The rise of interlocking directorates in imperial Germany," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 52(2), pages 307-333, May.
    33. Bordo, Michael D. & Rockoff, Hugh & Redish, Angela, 1996. "A comparison of the stability and efficiency of the Canadian and American banking systems, 1870–19251," Financial History Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 3(1), pages 49-68, April.
    34. Sylla, Richard, 1969. "Federal Policy, Banking Market Structure, and Capital Mobilization in the United States, 1863–1913," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 29(4), pages 657-686, December.
    35. Jeremy Edwards & Marcus Nibler, 2000. "Corporate governance in Germany: the role of banks and ownership concentration," Economic Policy, CEPR, CESifo, Sciences Po;CES;MSH, vol. 15(31), pages 238-267.
    36. Baker, Mae & Collins, Michael, 1999. "Financial Crises and Structural Change in English Commercial Bank Assets, 1860-1913," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 36(4), pages 428-444, October.
    37. Guinnane, Timothy W., 1997. "Regional organizations in the German cooperative banking system in the late 19th century," Research in Economics, Elsevier, vol. 51(3), pages 251-274, September.
    38. Chirinko, Robert S & Schaller, Huntley, 1995. "Why Does Liquidity Matter in Investment Equations?," Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 27(2), pages 527-548, May.
    39. Rin, Marco Da, 1996. "Understanding the development of the German Kreditbanken, 1850–1914: an approach from the economics of information1," Financial History Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 3(1), pages 29-47, April.
    40. Calomiris, Charles W & Kahn, Charles M, 1991. "The Role of Demandable Debt in Structuring Optimal Banking Arrangements," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 81(3), pages 497-513, June.
    41. Charles Calomiris, 1995. "The Costs of Rejecting Universal Banking: American Finance in the German Mirror, 1870-1914," NBER Chapters, in: Coordination and Information: Historical Perspectives on the Organization of Enterprise, pages 257-322, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    42. Sinn, Hans-Werner, . "The German state banks: Global players in the international financial markets," Monographs in Economics, University of Munich, Department of Economics, number 19864, November.
    43. Naomi R. Lamoreaux, 1994. "Insider Lending: Banks, Personal Connections, and Economic Development in Industrial New England," NBER Books, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc, number lamo94-1.
    44. Whale, Philip Barrett, 1930. "Joint Stock Banking in Germany: A Study of the German Creditbanks before and after the War," History of Economic Thought Books, McMaster University Archive for the History of Economic Thought, number whale1930.
    45. Peter Temin, 1991. "Introduction to "Inside the Business Enterprise: Historical Perspectives on the Use of Information"," NBER Chapters, in: Inside the Business Enterprise: Historical Perspectives on the Use of Information, pages 1-6, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    46. Wixforth, Harald & Ziegler, Dieter, 1994. "The niche in the universal banking system: the role and significance of private bankers within German industry, 1900–19331," Financial History Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 1(2), pages 99-119, October.
    47. Da Rin, Marco, 1997. "Finance and technology in early industrial economies: the role of economic integration," Research in Economics, Elsevier, vol. 51(3), pages 171-200, September.
    48. Edwards,Jeremy & Fischer,Klaus, 1996. "Banks, Finance and Investment in Germany," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521566087, October.
    49. Webb, Steven B., 1980. "Tariffs, Cartels, Technology, and Growth in the German Steel Industry, 1879 to 1914," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 40(2), pages 309-330, June.
    50. Gorton, Gary, 1996. "Reputation Formation in Early Bank Note Markets," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 104(2), pages 346-397, April.
    51. repec:bla:jfinan:v:53:y:1998:i:5:p:1737-1758 is not listed on IDEAS
    52. Lucas, Robert Jr., 1988. "On the mechanics of economic development," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 22(1), pages 3-42, July.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Al-Jarhi, Mabid Ali M. M., 2016. "An Economic Theory of Islamic Finance Regulation," Islamic Economic Studies, The Islamic Research and Training Institute (IRTI), vol. 24, pages 1-44.
    2. Muhammad Suhail Saleem & Asad Abbas & Dr Muhammad Ramzan Sheikh & Sana Sultan, 2024. "Financial Development in the SAARC Region: Identifying Influential Factors," Bulletin of Business and Economics (BBE), Research Foundation for Humanity (RFH), vol. 13(2), pages 513-525.
    3. K. Chen, Shaw & Chen, Xuanjuan & Lin, Bing-Xuan & Zhong, Rongsa, 2005. "The impact of government regulation and ownership on the performance of securities companies: Evidences from China," Global Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 16(2), pages 113-124, December.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Timothy W. Guinnane, 2002. "Delegated Monitors, Large and Small: Germany's Banking System, 1800–1914," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 40(1), pages 73-124, March.
    2. Cull, Robert & Davis, Lance E. & Lamoreaux, Naomi R. & Rosenthal, Jean-Laurent, 2006. "Historical financing of small- and medium-size enterprises," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 30(11), pages 3017-3042, November.
    3. Fohlin, Caroline, 1999. "Universal Banking in Pre-World War I Germany: Model or Myth?," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 36(4), pages 305-343, October.
    4. Burhop, Carsten, 2006. "Did banks cause the German industrialization?," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 43(1), pages 39-63, January.
    5. Becht, Marco & Bolton, Patrick & Roell, Ailsa, 2003. "Corporate governance and control," Handbook of the Economics of Finance, in: G.M. Constantinides & M. Harris & R. M. Stulz (ed.), Handbook of the Economics of Finance, edition 1, volume 1, chapter 1, pages 1-109, Elsevier.
    6. Howard Bodenhorn, 2016. "Two Centuries of Finance and Growth in the United States, 1790-1980," Working Papers id:11352, eSocialSciences.
    7. Marco Becht & Carlos D. Ramírez, 2003. "Does Bank Affiliation Mitigate Liquidity Constraints? Evidence from Germany's Universal Banks in the Pre‐World War I Period," Southern Economic Journal, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 70(2), pages 254-272, October.
    8. Hoffman, Philip T. & Postel-Vinay, Gilles & Rosenthal, Jean-Laurent, 2015. "Entry, information, and financial development: A century of competition between French banks and notaries," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 39-57.
    9. Al-Jarhi, Mabid Ali, 2005. "The Case For Universal Banking As A Component Of Islamic Banking," Islamic Economic Studies, The Islamic Research and Training Institute (IRTI), vol. 13, pages 2-65.
    10. Timothy W. Guinnane, 2001. "A 'Friend and Advisor': Management, Auditors, and Confidence in Germany's Credit Cooperatives, 1889-1914," Working Papers 824, Economic Growth Center, Yale University.
    11. Andreani, Ettore & Dummann, Kathrin & Neuberger, Doris, 2009. "Composition of supervisory boards in Germany: Inside or outside control of banks?," Thuenen-Series of Applied Economic Theory 103, University of Rostock, Institute of Economics.
    12. Monnet, Cyril & Quintin, Erwan, 2007. "Why do financial systems differ? History matters," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 54(4), pages 1002-1017, May.
    13. Da Rin, Marco & Hellmann, Thomas, 2002. "Banks as Catalysts for Industrialization," Journal of Financial Intermediation, Elsevier, vol. 11(4), pages 366-397, October.
    14. Anaïs A Périlleux, 2010. "Maturity Mismatch and Governance of Microfinance Cooperatives: Lessons from History," Working Papers CEB 10-005.RS, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
    15. Gorton, Gary & Winton, Andrew, 2003. "Financial intermediation," Handbook of the Economics of Finance, in: G.M. Constantinides & M. Harris & R. M. Stulz (ed.), Handbook of the Economics of Finance, edition 1, volume 1, chapter 8, pages 431-552, Elsevier.
    16. Colvin, Christopher L., 2015. "The past, present and future of banking history," QUCEH Working Paper Series 15-05, Queen's University Belfast, Queen's University Centre for Economic History.
    17. Kathrin Johansen & Saskia Laser & Doris Neuberger & Ettore Andreani, 2017. "Inside or outside control of banks? Evidence from the composition of supervisory boards," European Journal of Law and Economics, Springer, vol. 43(1), pages 31-58, February.
    18. Goergen, Marc & Manjon, Miguel C. & Renneboog, Luc, 2008. "Recent developments in German corporate governance," International Review of Law and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 28(3), pages 175-193, September.
    19. Miwa, Yoshiro & Ramseyer, J Mark, 2002. "Banks and Economic Growth: Implications from Japanese History," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 45(1), pages 127-164, April.
    20. Michael D. Bordo & David C. Wheelock, 2010. "The promise and performance of the Federal Reserve as lender of last resort 1914-1933," Working Papers 2010-036, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Universal Banking; German Banks; German Economic History;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G2 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services
    • G3 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance
    • N2 - Economic History - - Financial Markets and Institutions

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:egc:wpaper:835. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Benjamin King (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/egyalus.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.