Strategic inertia, financial fragility and organisational failure
The case of the Birkbeck Bank, 1870–1911
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 8420146 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Matthew Hollow (0000-0001-5207-5192, Durham University, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2014 |
| Volume | 56 |
| Issue | 5 |
| Pages | 746-764 |
| Publication date | 2014-07-04 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Business History (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0007-6791 • E-ISSN: 1743-7938 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/00076791.2013.839660 |
| OpenAlex | W2114573798 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 4 |
| References cited | 33 |
This article looks at the key factors behind the failure of the Birkbeck Bank in 1911. Using a wide range of primary source material, it charts how the Bank emerged from its philanthropic roots as a mutual building society in the 1870s to go on and enjoy spectacular growth during the late nineteenth century before eventually faltering and failing in the early twentieth century. Throughout the analysis, particular attention is given to the investment decisions taken by the Bank's management and the impact that these had on the Bank's fortunes. In addition, the article also looks at the extent to which the Birkbeck Bank's overall business model differed from those of other banks in this period. Ultimately, what it shows is that the Bank's failure to modify its investment strategy quickly enough in response to changing market conditions – most notably the fall in the value of Consols and other gilt-edged securities – proved to be the decisive factor in its eventual collapse. For this reason, the article contends, it is appropriate to categorise the 1911 Birkbeck Bank failure as one caused by strategic inertia rather than excessive risk-taking
Business · Central bank · China · Chinese financial system · Economics · Economy · Financial system · Investment (military · Investment banking · Market economy · Monetary economics · Monetary policy · Political science · Banking stability, regulation, efficiency · Economic Theory and Policy · Finance · Global Financial Crisis and Policies · Law
The fifth discipline, the art and practice of the learning organization
Bank Runs, Deposit Insurance, and Liquidity
That’s Where The Money Was
The London Clearing Banks
Bearing ‘the burden and heat of the day’
Concentration in British Banking 1870–1920
Why smart executives fail
Why do successful companies fail? A case study of the decline of Dunlop
Goschens's conversion of the National Debt and the Yield on Consols
The Building Society Movement
Capital Exports, 1870-1914 Harmful or Beneficial
The London Stock Exchange and the British Securities Market 1850-1914
| Unique citing works | 4 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,44 |
| Citation span | 2017 - 2024 (8) |
| Citation velocity | recent |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 4 |