The Business Activities Of Sino-Russian Daosheng Bank In China

In the 1890 s,with China's defeat in the Sino Japanese War of 1895,the Qing government put forward a huge loan request,which provided an opportunity for tsarist Russia's economic aggression against China.In 1895,the Chinese Russian Dao Sheng Bank,mainly in Northeast China and Xinjiang,was established in St.Petersburg,Russia,and launched a series of business activities.In name,it became the first Sino foreign joint bank and one of the representatives of foreign financial forces invading China in modern times.In fact,Russo China Dao Sheng Bank is the stronghold of Russia's economic invasion and capital export to China.Its business scope is very wide,far beyond the scope of normal banks.Its branches are all over Northeast China and Xinjiang,and deep into the mainland.In 1896,the Qing government invested 5 million taels of Kuping silver in the company.However,the signing of the contract and articles of Association for the joint operation of the East Provincial Railway Company made the share capital of 5 million taels vague.As a famous figure in modern Chinese history,Li Hongzhang deserves our attention in the process of the Qing government's taking shares.There are two studies on his bribery,one is whether he took bribes of 3 million rubles when he visited Russia,the other is whether he took bribes of 500000 taels of silver in the process of signing a contract for a large land lease.According to the comparative analysis of the existing data,there is no clear record on whether Li Hongzhang received the first ruble of 3 million.Before the signing of Lv Da land lease,according to the secret telegram of hongdang,it is generally true that the Russians tried to buy Li Hongzhang and Zhang Yinhuan in the loan negotiation.However,there are many doubts about whether they accepted bribes from the Russians in the negotiation of renting the University in early 1898,because there are some differences in the records of Li Hongzhang's bribes in the secret telegram of red file,the archives of the Russian Ministry of Finance and the Memoirs of victor.China Russian Dao Sheng Bank has set up many branches in various regions of China,which involves a very wide range of business.In order to obtain huge benefits and expand its economic strength,China Russian Dao Sheng Bank not only absorbs the taxes of customs and salt,deposits of small and medium-sized enterprises and social idle funds,but also wantonly issues currency in China,disrupting China's financial market.China Russian Dao Sheng Bank also invested in the Middle East Railway in China and obtained the right to build Luhan,Zhengtai and other railways in turn by providing loans.Not only that,China Russian Dao Sheng Bank has also invested in China's industry and Commerce in China,investing in flour industry and cotton textile industry by providing loans,mining China's rich gold,coal,iron and other mineral resources,and operating mines.In addition,China Russian Dao Sheng Bank provides financial loans to the central and local governments by taking China's tariff and salt tax as collateral.During its stay in China,China Russian Dao Sheng Bank gradually carried out financial penetration and capital expansion in China,which not only made Russia take the lead in seizing the market in Northeast China and Xinjiang,but also further enhanced its economic strength,expanded its sphere of influence in China,and more easily manipulated China's economy,which had a direct impact on China's economy.To a certain extent,China's infrastructure construction was strengthened,the development of resources and the development of industry and mining industry in Northeast China were promoted,the relationship between Northeast China and the outside world was closer,and the development of modern economy in Northeast China was accelerated.This paper attempts to study the business activities of China Russian Dao Sheng Bank in China for 30 years,including the formation process of the bank,share investment,capital sources,investment in China's railway,industry and mining industry,investment in China's enterprises,government loans,banknote issuance,etc.,so as to draw a more objective conclusion on the nature of the bank and restore the true historical face of this institution.