On the Influence of Traditional Economy on People

China ancient banking industry

1840 financial undertakings in the history of China before.

During the Shang and Zhou Dynasties (about16th century BC ~ 77 1 year BC), China was a country that produced money earlier, and there were metal coins in Shang and Western Zhou Dynasties. According to archaeological excavations and literature records, people mainly used physical currency and metal weighing currency in the exchange process in Shang and Zhou Dynasties. At that time, the physical currency was shells, tortoise shells, grain, cloth, etc., and the metal weighing currency was mainly copper.

During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period (770-476 BC), money was more widely circulated, and people gradually used copper coins. Due to unbalanced economic development, cultural differences and political separatism, the vassal States used different currencies. For example, the copper coins of the State of Qin were cast into square holes, and the coin text was "half Liang", and the right to coin was in the hands of the state. In addition, gold and cloth are also legal tender. At the end of the Warring States Period, the Golden Cloth Law enacted by Qin was the earliest monetary law in China.

During the Qin and Han dynasties (22 1 ~ 220), in 22 1 BC, Qin Shihuang unified China and introduced Qin's monetary system to all parts of the country. After Qin died, Han inherited the Qin system. In order to make the weight of currency more suitable for exchange, the Western Han government changed the weight of copper coins from "half two" (twelve baht) to "five baht". Since then, the five-baht money system has continued to the Sui Dynasty (58 1 ~ 6 18).

During the Southern and Northern Dynasties (420 ~ 589), the credit industry developed. The ancient credit in China originated from the end of primitive society, and the original loan object was the physical object. In the future, with the emergence and development of money, there are more and more monetary lending behaviors. In the early feudal society, lenders were mainly government officials, nobles and big landlords, while borrowers often had different degrees of personal dependence, so it was very difficult to escape debts. Therefore, the lending in this period is mainly credit lending, and the interest is usually very high. During the Warring States period, it was very common to lend money and take interest. During the Qin and Han dynasties, there were also people who specialized in lending money for profit, called "Zi Qian Jia". Some money families are rich in capital, and even the government sometimes borrows money from them to raise military expenses. During the Northern and Southern Dynasties, there appeared a temple, an institution that also operated credit business. At that time, Buddhism prevailed and temples were everywhere. Monks and nuns enjoy many privileges politically and economically. Temples not only engage in religious activities, but also manage a large amount of land and run lending business. In addition to traditional credit lending, there is also a pawn industry, which is mortgage lending.

There were two legal tender in Tang Dynasty (6 18 ~ 907): copper coins and silk. Silk is based on "horse" and is mostly used for large transactions. In the Tang Dynasty, five baht coins were abolished, and copper coins were no longer named by weight, but were renamed as "Bao Tong" and "Yuanbao", which developed into a more advanced form of coins than the monetary measurement and naming system.

The monetary economy developed greatly in the Tang Dynasty. But in the field of circulation, the shortage of coins has always been a prominent problem. Because copper coins are forbidden to leave the country and are heavy, it is extremely inconvenient for businessmen to carry them. Tang Xianzong has produced "flying money", that is, after selling goods in the capital, businessmen deliver the payment to schools, embassies and rich households, and get tickets from them, and then withdraw money with the tickets when they return to their places. This kind of flying money, also known as "convenient exchange", is the earliest exchange method in China.

With the prosperity of commerce and the development of foreign trade, the earliest financial market in China was formed in the West Market in Chang 'an, Tang Dou. Xi Shi is the most prosperous market in Chang 'an, with an area of about 1 square kilometer, and it is distributed in various shops and workshops, many of which are engaged in credit business, such as counter shops and consignment shops to collect deposits and keep property; Gold and silver shops are also engaged in the exchange and trading of raw gold and silver; Quality bank manages mortgage loans. The initial formation of financial market and the emergence of exchange business are the main signs of the development of financial industry in Tang Dynasty.

The development of monetary economy in Song Dynasty (960 ~ 1279) was manifested in the monetary form of silver and the appearance of paper money. Before the Han Dynasty, precious metals such as gold and silver were used as currency, and gold was legal tender in the Qin and Han Dynasties. After the Han Dynasty, due to the recession of monetary economy, precious metals lost their status as legal tender. At the end of the Tang Dynasty, precious metals re-entered circulation. Precious metal silver was gradually widely used in the Song Dynasty, while physical currency such as silk gradually lost its monetary qualification. Paper money first appeared in Sichuan at the end of 10. It was called "jiaozi" at that time. It was originally issued by private wealthy businessmen. After 1023, the government monopolized Jiaozi's distribution rights.

The amount of coins minted in the Song Dynasty greatly exceeded that in the Tang Dynasty, but there was chaos and regional separatism in the field of currency circulation. There are many kinds of coins in Song Dynasty, including Xiaoping, Discount 2, Discount 3, Discount 5 and Pawn. Monetary materials can be divided into copper coins, iron coins and tin coins. During the Northern Song Dynasty (960 ~ 1 127), Xixia and Liao, the minority regimes in the northwest and northeast, also minted their own currencies. In the Song Dynasty in the Central Plains, copper coins were used in some places, iron coins were circulated in some places, and copper coins and iron coins were also used in some places. During the Southern Song Dynasty (1 127 ~ 1279), the State of Jin, which occupied the northern part of the Central Plains, also minted and issued its own currency.

Yuan (127 1 ~ 1368) ended the chaotic situation of currency circulation in the Song Dynasty, and the currency was unified again. The currency in Yuan Dynasty was mainly paper money. Paper money was originally a credit exchange certificate that can cash silver, and later it gradually developed into non-cash paper money. In Yuan Dynasty, the paper money no longer takes the copper units such as "gold" and "Wen" in Song Dynasty as the value scale, but takes silver as the value scale. The paper money system in Yuan Dynasty was quite perfect. 1287, the Yuan government promulgated the Yuanbao banknote, which is the earliest and most complete monetary law in China.

Compared with the past, the credit business in Song and Yuan Dynasties did not develop much, and the traditional usury credit was still widely popular in society. Folk credit institutions are mainly pawnshops. Pawnshops were called "solution storehouse" and "quality storehouse" in Song Dynasty, "longevity storehouse" in temples and "solution storehouse" or "solution storehouse" in Yuan Dynasty. Pawnshops in the Yuan Dynasty sometimes operated credit loans in addition to mortgage loans. In addition to private pawn shops, the government has also begun to establish institutions to operate the pawn industry. For example, the Jin government once set up a quality museum, also called "flowing spring", and the Yuan government set up a public library called "Glory Library". After the Song Dynasty, the variety of currencies increased, so the exchange industry developed. At that time, there were "gold and silver shops" and "silver shops" operating the exchange industry. The "Bank of Communications Shop" in the Song Dynasty not only operated various exchanges, but also bought and sold various paper money. With the popularity of paper money, the exchange business gradually declined.

During the Ming and Qing Dynasties (1368 ~1911), there were paper money, copper coins and silver. Paper money was mainly used in the early Ming Dynasty, and silver became the main currency after the middle Ming Dynasty. In Qing dynasty (1616 ~1911), silver was used. Copper coins, modeled after the minting system of the Ming Dynasty, were uniformly cast and issued by the state, while silver ingots were freely cast by the people. Therefore, there are many differences in the weight and color of cast silver in different places.

During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the financial industry developed significantly, especially the pawnbroking industry, which spread all over the country. According to statistics, 1644 there were more than 20,000 pawn shops in China, and 1744 there were six or seven hundred in Beijing. Some pawn shops have a capital of tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands. Pawnbrokers are mainly businessmen, in addition to landlords, bureaucrats and even the government. They also invest in pawnshops, which are called "official pawns". Pawnshops not only lend money, but also collect deposits and exchange money.

During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, banks, banks and other new financial institutions appeared. Qianzhuang originated in the mid-Ming Dynasty, with a small scale at first, mainly engaged in the exchange industry. At the end of the Ming Dynasty, Qianzhuang gradually developed into a financial institution close to modern times, which not only exchanged copper coins, gold and silver, but also engaged in loans and deposits. Qianzhuang first appeared in the early Qing Dynasty, and its business was similar to Qianzhuang. Banks and banks also issue money tickets and silver tickets, which can be exchanged for copper coins and silver. After the Qing dynasty, with the establishment of banks and banks throughout the country, the circulation of bills was very extensive.

During the Qianlong and Jiaqing years of the Qing Dynasty, banks engaged in exchange business appeared. Because the operators are mainly from Shanxi, they are also called "Shanxi Floating Village". At first, they only handled remittances for businessmen. Later, they also handled public currency exchange, deposits and loans for the government and officials.

In addition to various institutions run by the people, the Qing government also set up the official financial institution "Guanhao" to engage in various financial businesses.