Bagehot was one of the first writers to describe and explain the world of international and corporate finance, banking, and money in understandable language. The book was in part a reaction to the 1866 collapse of Overend, Gurney and Company, located at 65 Lombard Street, from which the title draws its name. Bagehot’s description, and knowledge, is timeless and a must for anyone who wants to understand our money market and economy.

Bagehot was one of the first writers to describe and explain the world of international and corporate finance, banking, and money in understandable language. The book was in part a reaction to the 1866 collapse of Overend, Gurney and Company, located at 65 Lombard Street, from which the title draws its name. Bagehot’s description, and knowledge, is timeless and a must for anyone who wants to understand our money market and economy.

I venture to call this essay ‘Lombard Street’ and not the ‘Money Market,’ or any such phrase, because I wish to deal, and to show that I mean to deal, with concrete realities in my explanation of how money moves and flows around cities. Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. We are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork.

Financial observer and journalist Walter Bagehot sheds light on the world of banking in his influential tract Written in response to a nineteenth-century banking crisis in England, Walter Bagehot’s influential treatise was one of the first to clearly explain complex financial systems like international banking, currency, and corporate finance in clear and easy-to-understand language. Credit, Bagehot suggests, is based primarily on trust. When the banks lose the public’s trust, the entire system can collapse.   In Lombard Street, Bagehot—who was the editor in chief of the Economist—sets forth a series of proposals for the strengthening and survival of struggling financial institutions, such as allowing irresponsible banks to collapse and creating strong central banks to combat inflation. His insights are as relevant in today’s economic climate as they were when the book was first published in 1873.   This ebook has been professionally proofread to ensure accuracy and readability on all devices.