Multinational banking e rischi di mercato : il caso delle banche italiane in Egitto tra le due guerre mondiali

Geoffrey Jones's study of the historical process of multinationalization of British banks (Jones, 1993) is a milestone in the debate on the banking role in the context of globalization. The approach was 'systemic' as it highlights some general trends that characterize the British banking system. However, the strategy pursued by banks is strictly dependent on the peculiarities of the various host economies and this makes it appropriate to integrate the previous method with a more attentive approach to individual national cases. In this perspective, the article focuses on the case of the Italian banking affiliations in Egypt between the two world wars, on which historiography appears incomplete. This study aims to demonstrate how the combination of pressures from Italy and the internal evolution of the Egyptian market determined, after an initial phase of relative prosperity, a sudden deterioration in the position of Italian institutions in that country.

Only by considering these dynamics, internal and external to the host country, is it possible to achieve a precise understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of institutions operating on international markets. [Publisher's text].