Notes and discussions
No. 303 (2023): Italia Contemporanea - open access section
On the “History of the Bank of Italy” by Gianni Toniolo
Abstract
This paper presents the main themes of Gianni Toniolo’s recent volume dedicated to the history of the Bank of Italy between its foundation (1893) and the fall of fascism (1943). Discussing recent contributions on the history of “central banking”, the paper shows how the contrast between the “evolution” and the “building” of a central bank represents a useful, albeit partial, key for re-reading the history of the Bank of Italy. While in the Giolitti era the Bank vigorously asserts its role in the defense of monetary stability and in the pursuit of the public interest, in the interwar years there was a progressive downsizing of its main functions of monetary and foreign exchange policy. In this phase, with the Banking Acts of 1926 and 1936, the making of new rules prevailed, that directed the Bank of Italy to carry out supervisory tasks to protect the stability of the Italian banking system.
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