Banking: An Illustrated History

Examines the opulent and powerful profession of banking, from medieval Italy, where merchant communities first institutionalized banks, to the present world of international finance

This overview of world banking from its beginnings in the counting houses of the Italian Renaissance to its present state today is somewhat unusual--unusual for its pictures, which show a brick-and-mortar enterprise transformed into an electronic wonder, with color photographs of lavish bank architecture and illustrations of bank customs, practices, and documents. Century by century, the text chronicles commercial lending from a global perspective. The final chapter on contemporary events covers the major activities of the 1970s through 1989 that have affected the interdependent, deregulated banking industry (though it is debatable, as Green asserts, whether the Glass Steagall era has truly ended in America). Not enough depth here for the specialist, but the interested layperson, student, and history buff will enjoy this book.
- Ellen Bates, New York
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.