The origins of the (cooperative) species: Raiffeisen banking in the Netherlands, 1898–19091

Christopher Colvin, Stuart Henderson and John Turner ()

European Review of Economic History, 2020, vol. 24, issue 4, 749-782

Abstract: Cooperatively owned Raiffeisen banks first emerged in the Netherlands in the late 1890s and spread rapidly across the country. Using a new dataset, we investigate the determinants of their market entry and early performance. We find the cooperative organisational form, when allied to a change in the structure of Dutch agriculture and the socioreligious pillarisation of Dutch society, was an important factor explaining their entry into rural financial markets. While religious organisations provided a necessary impetus for the emergence of Raiffeisen banks, the economic advantages associated with cooperative enterprises ensured the subsequent survival and success of these banks.“We will now discuss in a little more detail the Struggle for Existence.”From Charles Darwin, The Origins of the Species (1859)

Date: 2020
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:oup:ereveh:v:24:y:2020:i:4:p:749-782.

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