 Banca Romana scandal trial | |
| Date | 1893–1894 |
|---|---|
| Location | Italy |
| Participants | The Banca Romana had loaned large sums to property developers but was left with huge liabilities when the real estate bubble collapsed in 1887. |
| Outcome | The scandal prompted a new banking law, tarnished the prestige of the Prime Ministers Francesco Crispi and Giovanni Giolitti and prompted the collapse of the latter's government in November 1893. |
The Banca Romana scandal surfaced in January 1893 in Italy over the bankruptcy of the Banca Romana,[1] one of the six national banks authorised at the time to issue currency.[2] The scandal was the first of many Italian corruption scandals, and discredited both ministers and parliamentarians, in particular those of the Historical Left and was comparable to the Panama Canal Scandal that was shaking France at the time, threatening the constitutional order.[3] The crisis prompted a new banking law, tarnished the prestige of the Prime Ministers Francesco Crispi and Giovanni Giolitti and prompted the collapse of the latter's government in November 1893. The scandal led also to the creation of one central bank, the Bank of Italy.
- ^ Italy Has Her Scandal; Ex-Premier Crispi Said To Be Involved, The New York Times, January 27, 1893
- ^ Volta, Richard Dalla (1893). "The Italian Banking Crisis". Journal of Political Economy. 2 (1): 1–25. doi:10.1086/250183. ISSN 0022-3808.
- ^ Italy's Financial Scandals; Kingdom startled by the peril of the national finances, The New York Tribune, 12 February 1893