British International Banking

Abstract

The origin of the British international banks can be traced back to the Bank of Australasia, the Bank of British North America, and the Colonial Bank established in British colonies such as Australia, Canada, and the West Indies in the 1830s. These banks were granted Royal Charter from the British government. Among the banking companies that entered Asia, the Oriental Bank Corporation was granted a Royal Charter for the first time only in 1851. This delay was attributable to opposition from the East India Company. After addressing the resistance of the East India Company, the greatest challenge for the British international banks in Asia was the decline in the silver price s from the late 1870s. Additionally, they had been forced to compete with international banks of other countries such as France, Germany, and Japan. In this chapter, we will focus on the British international banks that had entered Asia and provide insights into the banking business there. In particular, we will approach these issues by analyzing the internal accounting records of these banks. We will also examine the business activities of the banks in the New York financial market, which have not been examined hitherto.