Abstract

The activity of Italian banks in Egypt represents an almost unexplored field of investigation in economic history. This article is the first to attempt to add to the Italian banking literature in this area. At the same time, it contributes to the multinational banking literature on the characteristics of banks belonging to multinational groups, which are subject to a ‘liability of foreignness’ due to differences between the home country and the host economy. The paper explains the short-lived success of Italian banks, which were able to occupy primary positions in the Egyptian banking sector thanks to an aggressive policy focussed on the cotton market. It then highlights the reasons for the subsequent problems these institutes faced, showing the difficulties of a latecomer and capital-poor country, such as Italy, in carrying out a catching-up process aimed at widening its influence over geographical areas considered strategic in terms of political and commercial penetration.

摘要

意大利银行在埃及的活动是经济史上一个几乎未开发的调查领域。本文是第一个尝试添加到该领域的意大利银行业文献中的文章。同时，它为跨国银行有关跨国集团银行特征的文献做出了贡献，由于母国与东道国经济之间的差异，这些银行具有“外国责任”。本文解释了意大利银行业短暂的成功，由于专注于棉花市场的积极政策，意大利银行业能够在埃及银行业占据主要地位。然后重点介绍了这些研究所面临的后续问题的原因，并指出了后来者和资本贫乏的国家（例如意大利）所面临的困难，