조선은행권 발행 제도에 있어서 보증준비의 함의 : 국책과 영리의 관계를 중심으로

Abstract

This paper aims to figure out the interrelationship between the Bank of Joseon's system of note issuance and its profit. The Bank of Joseon’s system of note issue was an elastic limit system with a proportional reserve system and it was the nub of their concern that their gold reserves were mostly taken by Japanese banking industry. Since the Bank of Joseon had difficulties in raising Japanese notes due to the constant trade deficit, it had to fill up the fund shortage with calls in the Japanese call market or solve this problem with an excess issue. Both of these methods were losses for the Bank of Joseon, however, because it had to pay purchasing costs. Therefore, fiduciary issuance, which was profitable entirely by issuing notes with interest-free funds, was the most preferred issuance method by the Bank of Joseon. However, limit of fiduciary issue had to be assessed by the Japanese Imperial Diet. Unless there were external groundbreaking exemptions given, extension of security notes for the Bank of Joseon was not easily considered. One extension in 1911 was for raising its financial funds as Japan’s annexation of Joseon, and another in 1918 was realized when the Bank of Joseon was publicly granted legal tender in Manchuria. From 1937 to 1939, the extension of limit was realized for use as military currency in Sino-Japanese wartime and playing a role in securing wartime expenditure. There were diverse joint methods in issuance of Bank of Joseon notes. Among them, fiduciary issue was the most favorable method for the Bank of Joseon. Fiduciary issue was only able to be extended in carrying out the national policy. Japanese national policy was the most powerful and only way for the Bank of Joseon to guarantee their profits. The Bank of Joseon could make a profit by being an active main participant in carrying out Japanese national policy. In that sense, the bank had a progressive position rather than passive position. This system of fiduciary issue shows clearly that the Bank of Joseon was not merely the colonial central bank but a financial institution which pursued profit through conducting Japanese national policy.