From private bankers to public banks in the Kingdom of Naples (16th – 17th C.)

Economic practices, notably credit, have historically been underpinned by principles of credibility and trust. In the context of the Middle Ages and Early Modern times, the concept of civilitas was shaped by notions of otherness and the consequent social inclusion or exclusion. When social exclusion becomes evident because the economic system pushes some to the threshold of poverty, new solidarity mechanisms are set up to bring “laborious poverty” back into the productive system. But these solidarity mechanisms can transform themselves into complex economic systems leading to advanced credit practices. Concepts of trust and solidarity were the founding principles of the public banks in Naples at the end of the sixteenth century. They replaced the private bankers who had monopolistically controlled the circulation of money since the fifteenth century. This paper aims to elucidate the transition from the credit monopoly held by private bankers to the emergence of banks initiated by charitable organizations, representing a unique model in the European credit landscape during the modern era.