quoted at $91 m/n in September, 1917. Other internal loans of the city are as follows:

The municipality of Rosario has outstanding £1,982,775 bonds of an issue of £2,000,000 4 per cent gold external bonds, guaranteed principal and interest by the Province of Santa Fe. The bonds were originally issued in 1887 and in 1889, and were placed on a full interest basis in 1913. The direct tax of the Province of Santa Fe has been assigned as security. A recent price is 46 per cent. Two internal loans are also obligations of the municipality. One bears interest at 7 per cent and has a sinking fund of 1 per cent, and the other bears interest at 6 per cent and carries a 2 per cent sinking fund. The latter bonds were quoted at 71.50 in May, 1915.

In 1889 the city of Santa Fe issued bonds to the amount of £257,900 at 6 per cent. These bonds defaulted in 1891 but part of the arrears were made up through the issuance of £42,100 sterling funded coupon bonds. From 1905 to 1915 interest was paid at the rate of 4 per cent per annum in Argentine currency, and from September, 1915, at the rate of 6 per cent per annum, also in currency. The latest £3 semiannual coupon realized £1 6s. The bonds and the sterling coupon bonds were quoted, in January, 1918, at about 26 per cent of par (£100). The original offering price was 95 per cent.

BANKS AND BANKING.

Considerations of space will make it impracticable to give a fully detailed account of banks and banking methods in Argentina. Brief mention will be made, however, of a number of the important local and foreign institutions in the banking field, and the subject of banking in the Republic will be discussed in a general way.

The history of the banks in Argentina virtually began with the establishment of the Compañía del Banco de Buenos Aires, on September 6, 1822. The original capital consisted of 225 shares of the par value of 1,000 pesos, this amount being increased to 466 shares in the following year. A dividend of 18 per cent resulted from the first year's operations. In 1826 the bank was incorporated into the Banco de las Provincias Unidas del Rio de la Plata. In 1836 this somewhat unwieldy title was changed to Casa de Moneda, and later to Banco de la Provincia de Buenos Aires.

Between 1862 and 1872 several banks began operations, among them the London & River Plate Bank. At the close of the nineteenth century there were 42 banks of all classes in Argentina; by January 1, 1906, this total had increased to 67, and to-day the number is about 150. Employees of banks number more that 12,000.

1

BANK OF THE ARGENTINE NATION.

The Bank of the Argentine Nation (Banco de la Nación Argentina), with head offices at Buenos Aires and branches throughout the Republic, is the official Government financial institution. It dates from the year 1891, when it began business with a capital of $50,000,000 m/n. In 1905 the capitalization amounted to $100,000,000 m/n. At the present writing the capitalization stands at $128,000,000 m/n. Cash reserves amount to $39,672,331 o/s and $356,349,582 m/n, and deposits amount to $7,621,624 o/s and $785,403,037 m/n. The bank is allowed to make loans to no Government except that of Argentina, and may loan to the National Government only to the extent of 20 per cent of its capital. The bank must hold on deposit a conversion fund, in gold, to which the Government contributes out of the revenues. This gold reserve is held against the paper currency which was issued previous to the passing of the conversion law and which remains in circulation. One-half of the profits of the bank is to be applied to the increase of capital and one-half is to be converted into gold to be credited to the reserve. The following table illustrates the growth of the institution:

The table on the next page shows the condition of the various banks doing business in the city of Buenos Aires on June 30, 1917:

5,713, 636

5,000,000
1,282,440
98, 146, 200

87,537

$0/8
1,001, 291
799, 018
723,057

8m/n
24,794, 916
34, 658, 134
28,389,769

18,541, 186
1, 199, 291

$0/8
1,731,913

236,687

3,091, 735

8 m/n
12,393,308
0,010,084
14,732, 627

80/8

8 m/n

3,650,000

2,475,000

4,530,000

153, 151

6,211,533

206, 104, 313

2,101,668

57,000, 796

The following table shows the condition of the Buenos Aires banks, taken together, at the end of each of the first six months of 1917 and at the end of June, 1916:

The issuance, exchange, and conversion of the paper currency of the Argentine Republic is dealt with by the Government Office for the Conversion of Currency (Caja de Conversión), which is under the control of the Minister of Finance. This institution holds the supply of gold reserved as guarantee for the convertible value of the paper currency that it issues. Statements are regularly issued by the institution showing the total circulation of paper currency, the stock of gold in the Caja de Conversión and the amounts of gold deposited in foreign countries. As of June 30, 1917, it was stated that $261,592,511 gold was held in the Caja de Conversión and $55,254,373 abroad.

Quotations and dividend records of several important local banks will be found in the Appendix (p. 497) among the lists of securities quoted on the Bolsa at Buenos Aires.

Among the most important banks of the Republic is the Spanish Bank of the River Plate (Banco Español del Rio de la Plata), in which $98,065,340 m/n has been invested. The par value of the shares is $100 m/n, and a recent selling price was 115 per cent. The subscribed capital now amounts to $100,000,000 m/n (£8,730,158). The bank was established in 1882, the head office being located at Buenos Aires. There are 48 branches in the principal cities of Argentina, as well as 3 in Brazil (Rio de Janeiro, Santos, São Paulo), 1 in Montevideo, Uruguay, and 10 in Europe."

The Argentine Popular Bank (Banco Popular) is another important local institution. The bank was established in 1887 and, as shown by the above table of deposits, etc., has become a power in the Argentine Republic. Previous to the war the bank paid dividends of from 12 to 14 per cent. For the fiscal year ended June 30, 1916, the rate was 9 per cent. The $20 m/n shares were quoted in September, 1917, at $26 m/n.

The Bank of the Province of Buenos Aires (Banco de la Provincia de Buenos Aires), which, as already stated, is the oldest bank in the Republic, has its head office at La Plata and branches in Buenos Aires and elsewhere. The $100 m/n shares were quoted in September, 1917, at $125 m/n, a rise of 17 points from the low price of the The dividend for the year 1916 was at the rate of 61 per cent, as compared with 10 per cent per annum paid during the three years prior to the war.

year.

The New Italian Bank (Nuevo Banco Italiano) is one of the most profitable banks in the Republic. It was founded in the year 1887,

and its dividend record has been a most substantial one. In 1911, 20 per cent was paid; in 1912, 22 per cent; in 1913, 23 per cent; and in 1914, 18 per cent. The rate for the fiscal year 1915-16 was 12 per cent. The shares, which have a par value of $100 m/n, have sold between 205 and 215 per cent during 1917.

The Italian Commercial Bank (Banco Comercial Italiano), incorporated in 1898, has for years paid moderate dividends. Its $100 m/n shares sold in September, 1917, at approximately par. The head office of the institution is in Buenos Aires. The important provincial banks of the Republic are:

The Italian Commercial Bank has been a most progressive institution, as will be indicated by the following table:

Discounts and advances as of June 30, 1917, amounted to $87,537 o/s and $18,541,186 m/n.

ARGENTINE POPULAR BANK.

As a typical illustration of the development of banks in the city of Buenos Aires, reference may be made to the Argentine Popular Bank. This institution, founded in 1887, has increased its capital since the year of its incorporation from $980,500 m/n to $1,014,511 m/n. There are 3,505 holders of the bank's shares-2,626 being of Argentinian nationality, 302 Italian, 226 Spanish, 390 British, 117 French, 75 Uruguayan, 44 German, 4 American, 3 Serbian, etc. Of the holders, 602 are merchants, 222 engaged in agricultural pursuits, 144 lawyers, 103 doctors, 62 engineers, 57 journalists, 531 engaged in domestic occupations, etc. In addition to its shares, the bank has outstanding approximately $930,000 o/s 5 per cent bonds and $1,472,