The rise of modern banking in Naples

A comparative perspective

15 Jun 2017 at 8:30am

Naples, Italy

The conference, organised by Fondazione Banco di Napoli, Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II, Banca d’Italia – Eurosistema,  will be held at the original site of the ancient Banco dei Poveri, which now hosts the Banco di Napoli Foundation and its imposing Historical Archive.

Experts from Italy, the United States, France, England, Ireland, Portugal and Austria will analyze one of the most controversial themes of historical and economic analysis: the “magic of credit”; the “mystery” of the nature of currency and banks. It was in Naples – this is the claim, supported by the documents in the Historical Archives – that the first fiduciary circulation was created, thanks to the public banks. These banks, in addition to their orthodox, profit-oriented economic activity, maintained a philanthropic identity for centuries: a very different tradition from the purely mercantile origins which dominated the Anglo-Saxon tradition. The social economic context in which the modern bank was created (the Kingdom of Naples under Spanish rule) and the fusion of the philanthropy of the “monti” and the mercantile aspects of the “banchi” will be the central focus of the convention.

The conference will be closed by the Governor of the Banca d’Italia.

Programme

Day 1	15 June 2017
08.30	Registration of participants and welcome coffee
09.00	WELCOME ADDRESSES Gaetano Manfredi, Rector, Università di Napoli Federico II Daniele Marrama, President, Fondazione Banco di Napoli Marco Musella, Vice President, Fondazione Banco di Napoli
09.30	SESSION 1 THE RISE OF MODERN BANKING IN NAPLES Chair: Lilia Costabile, Università di Napoli Federico II The Public Banks of Naples between Financial Innovation and Crisis Lilia Costabile, Università di Napoli Federico II Eduardo Nappi, Director, Archivio Storico del Banco di Napoli The Investments of Neapolitan Public Banks: a Long Run View (1587-1863) Francesco Balletta, Università di Napoli Federico II Luigi Balletta, Università di Palermo Eduardo Nappi, Director, Archivio Storico del Banco di Napoli Before the Public Banks. Charity, Assistance and the Economy in 15th Century Naples Rosalba di Meglio, Università di Napoli Federico II Between Assistance and Credit. The evolution of the Neapolitan Banking System (16th - 17th Century) Paola Avallone and Raffaella Salvemini CNR, Istituto di Studi sulle Società del Mediterraneo Discussion
12.00	Visit to the Historical Archives of the Banco di Napoli
13.00	Lunch
14.30	SESSION 2 COMPARATIVE PERSPECTIVES: EARLY BANKING IN SOUTHERN EUROPE Chair: Barry Eichengreen, University of California, Berkeley Public Banks in Early Modern Europe François R. Velde, Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago A Tale of Three Banking Systems: Florence, Genoa and Venice in the Renaissance Luciano Pezzolo, Università Ca’Foscari, Venice The Bank of Santo Spirito in Rome Luigi De Matteo, Università L’Orientale, Napoli Discussion
16.30	ROUND TABLE 1 THE INTELLECTUAL ENVIRONMENT Chair: José Luís Cardoso, Universidade de Lisboa The Cultural Heritage of the Public Banks of Naples Fabio Mangone, Università di Napoli Federico II The Economic Languages of Credit and Public Debt between the 13th and the 16th Centuries Giacomo Todeschini, Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin Fiduciary Money and Banking in Neapolitan Economic Thought Lilia Costabile and Rosario Patalano, Università di Napoli Federico II Broggia and Galiani on Banking Activities André Tiran, Université de Lyon Genovesi, ‘Economia Civile’ and the Political Economy of Enlightenment José Luís Cardoso, Universidade de Lisboa Conclusions Giampaolo D’Andrea, Chief of Cabinet of Ministry of Cultural Heritage
End	18.30
Day 2	16 June 2017
09.00	SESSION 3 COMPARATIVE PERSPECTIVES: EARLY BANKING IN CONTINENTAL EUROPE Chair: Antoin E. Murphy, Trinity College Dublin John Law: a 21st Century Banker in the 18th Century Antoin E. Murphy, Trinity College Dublin An Early Example of ‘Permazero’: the Bank of Amsterdam, 1736-1791 William Roberds, Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta Stephen Quinn, Texas Christian University Public Banking in 18th Century Austria Clemens Jobst, Oesterreichische Nationalbank Discussion
11.00	Coffee break
11.30	FINANCIAL SECTOR RESPONSES TO WAR AND CRISES: THE THIRTY YEARS’ WAR Chair: Larry Neal, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign The Variety of European Innovations in War Finance during the Thirty Years’ War Larry Neal, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Species of Excise-Backed Paper during the English Civil Wars and Interregnum: Securitisation versus Monetisation, 1643-1660 D’Maris Coffman, University College London Conflicts, Financial Innovations and Economic Trends in the Italian States during the Thirty Years’ War Giuseppe De Luca, Università di Milano Discussion
13.30	Lunch
14.30	ROUND TABLE 2 THE USE OF ARCHIVES FOR FINANCIAL HISTORY Chair: Alfredo Gigliobianco, Chief, Economic History and Historical Archives Division, Structural Studies Department, Banca d’Italia Introduction to an Information System of the Historical Archive of a Credit Institution Paolo Franzese, Superindentent of the Archives in Campania The Historical Archives of the Bank of Naples Eduardo Nappi, Director, Archivio Storico del Banco di Napoli Financial Case Histories: Opening up the Archives of Litigation Amanda Bevan, Principal Records Specialist, Legal Records Advice and Records Knowledge Department, The National Archives Research and the Changing Nature of Documents Alfredo Gigliobianco, Chief, Economic History and Historical Archives Division, Structural Studies Department, Banca d’Italia
16.30	End
20.00	Official dinner
Day 3	17 June 2017
09.30	SESSION 5 BETWEEN PAST AND PRESENT Chair: Ignazio Visco, Governor, Banca d’Italia Profit and Non-profit Motives in the Public Banks of Naples: an Old Model in Modern Perspective Adriano Giannola, Università di Napoli Federico II Public Banks and the Great Financial Crisis of 2007-2008 Gerald Epstein and Devika Dutt University of Massachusetts, Amherst Banks, Financial Markets, and the Making of International Currencies Barry Eichengreen, University of California, Berkeley The Changing Role of Central Banks Charles Goodhart, London School of Economics Discussion
12.00	Concluding Remarks Ignazio Visco, Governor, Banca d’Italia
12.30	Refreshments
13.30	Close