ARHIVELE OLTENIEI - Universitatea din Craiova

The Romanian National Bank after nationalization.The monetary reform from 1947 89According to the statues of Romanian National Bank from 1940 thisinstitution was constituted in anonymous society having the right to emit billspayable to bearer and with the view to, having the obligation to maintain thestability of currency. Among the main operations the bank could do were:discounting of promissory notes, hand notes and other effects, having as apurpose commercial operations; granting of loans with ingots or golden or silvercoins and estimates 10 .Through the Law from 28 December 1946 for the nationalization andorganization of Romanian National Bank were established the new statutes ofthe bank 11 . Thus the Romanian National Bank nationalized had to function in theterms of a capitalist banking machine subordinated to popular power. Theinstitution satisfied the required conditions of a socialist bank of evidence andcontrol of production and circulation of means being a unique center ofemission, discount and granting credits on short terms. It was organized as ananonymous joint-stock company having a capital of 600million lei shared in 200thousand actions of 3,000 lei each 12 . Bank’s actions passed into state’s propertyand ex-shareholders had to receive for every action a sum in cash which wasestablished by the panel of judges instituted by the Court of Appeal, made by thefirst president, two counselors and the first clerk 13 . The management wasarrogated to a council of administration set up from a governor, vice-governorand nine administrators nominated by the state. The Council of Ministersassumed the competences of the generally, ordinary and extraordinary assemblyanticipated by the commercial laws. The technical operations of the nationalizedbank were similar with the anticipated ones in the statutes of National Bank from1940. Regarding to the golden reserve and the estimates, the bank was obliged toform a gold coverage at least of 25% from the sum of engagements with theview which included the emission of the banknotes 14 .Through its quality of state’s mandatory, the National Bank assureddirecting and the control of credits above all banks and private or public creditinstitutions regarding the credit and currency emission 15 .The elimination of speculates with estimates, gold and actions and alsothe guidance of capitals towards the productive activities are othermeasurements through which the state consolidated the control over theeconomy. This way was adopted a new system of remuneration, the Ministry ofIndustry and Trade was reorganized, setting up industrial offices. Therefore, the10 Ibidem, p. 10.11 Costin Kiriţescu, Etatizarea Băncii Naţionale a României, în „Probleme economice”,anul XXII, nr. 8, 1969, p. 173.12 Al. Pintea, Gheorghe Ruscanu, Băncile în economia românească 1774-1995,Bucureşti, Editura Economică, 1995, p. 237.13 Ibidem.14 Costin Kiriţescu, art. cit., p. 180.15 „Monitorul Oficial”, partea a III-a, nr. 14 din 1 februarie 1947, p. 225.