Verführt von der Lobby - Defizite der Reichsgenossenschaftshilfe in der Bankenkrise der 1930er Jahre. Eine Fallstudie vom Niederrhein
The “St. Tönis Tack’scher Spar- und Darlehnskassenverein eingetragene Genossenschaft mit unbeschränkter Haftung” was a co-operative bank that was founded in 1895 in the Lower Rhine-area as part of a wave of new banks in rural regions at that time. It has since merged with the leading co-operative bank in the region, the Volksbank Krefeld. In 1932 the institute became insolvent. This, however, was not caused by the Great Depression, but first and foremost by the failure of the leading staff, who often acted arbitrarily, negligently, even penally. Although the national association of co-operatives pushed for governmental grants only for those co-operative banks who had not become in need of redevelopment through their own fault, this small co-operative bank was a big beneficiary of state aid (“Reichsgenossenschaftshilfe”). For the state had left it to the agricultural lobby to distribute the aid. Despite the big amount of public help the rescued bank didn’t regain the clients respect and reliance for nearly thirty years. The legal status as bank with unlimited liability didn’t play any role. This status couldn’t replace liable equity. And allocating subsidies without imposing conditions for better corporate governance ended in lost money, albeit, obviously not for the single associate. But the state aid didn’t liven up the business of this co-operative bank.