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40-450: Constructed in 1909, Gwangtonggwan is one of the few surviving examples of Korea's early 20th century western architecture. In recognition of the building's architectural and historic importance, Gwangtonggwan was registered as the one of city's protected monuments on March 5, 2001. Gwangtonggwan was built in 1909 originally as a head office for Daehan Cheon-il Bank and Suhyeongjohap. Daehan Cheon-il Bank, established in 1899 and supported by

80-508: A different location in 1924. The building therefore became the Sangup Bank's Jongno branch on August 31, 1924. Joseon Sangup bank changed its name to Hanguk Sangup Bank (also known as Commercial Bank of Korea) when Korea was liberated, changed its name to Hanbit Bank in 1998, and then again to Woori Bank in 2002, but Gwangtonggwan still maintains and continues its banking operations as a Jongno branch. Mainly built from red bricks and granite,

120-812: A dominant position in the country’s financial sector, thanks to Japanese Finance Ministry protection. It opened a first Korean branch in Busan in June 1878, for which the Japanese government lent it half of the 100,000 yen needed for start-up expenses. This episode has been described as the starting point both of Japanese-Korean financial relations and of modern banking in Korea. Further branches followed in Wonsan (May 1880), Incheon (November 1882), Seoul (1888), Mokpo (1898), and Chinnampo and Gunsan (1903). Tariffs were not specified in

160-725: A fire occurred in February 1914, and the building's detail was much altered from its original form when it was restored and reopened in 1915. Since this building was located near Gwangtonggyo Bridge, a historic and important bridge of Seoul that crosses Cheonggyecheon , it came to be called as "Gwangtonggwan". The Korean term "gyo" ( 교 ; 橋 ) translates in English as "bridge", while "gwan" ( 관 ; 館 ) translates as "building" or "house". Following Japan's annexation of Korean Empire in 1910, Cheon-il Bank changed its name to Joseon Sangup Bank in 1911, and moved its head offices from Gwangtonggwan to

200-556: A matter of renewed debate, this time among Japanese. In August 1907, Japan's Resident-General Itō Hirobumi and Shibusawa agreed that Dai-Ichi's operations should be eventually transferred to a dedicated central bank for the territory. A debate ensued between Itō and the Japanese finance ministry, with the latter favoring the creation of a Korean branch of the Bank of Japan over that of a stand-alone colonial institution over which Tokyo would have less direct control. Eventually Itō's position won

240-467: A third in March 1900. In May 1886, Dai-Ichi Bank secured funding from the newly established Bank of Japan to collect gold and silver in Korea for the benefit of Japan, which at the time still lacked sources of precious metals. Purchases of gold became an important component of Dai-Ichi Bank's Korean business, with yearly volumes fluctuating between 2,400 and 3,600 tons between 1901 and 1907. Towards

280-485: A wide geographical area. It simultaneously diversified its deposit base from an initial heavy reliance on public funds; these represented 70 percent of all deposits in late 1875, but only 20 percent a year later. The Japan–Korea Treaty of 1876 opened a period during which Japan enjoyed a near-monopoly on Korea's overseas trade, as the country's trade with Japan expanded dramatically while its trade with China collapsed. Dai-Ichi rapidly seized that opportunity and secured

320-563: The Russo-Japanese War resulted in the elimination of the last check against Japanese dominant influence in the country. In early 1903, officials in the Korean capital attempted to prohibit the use by Koreans of Dai-Ichi's banknotes, but had to rescind the order after a fortnight. In January 1905, the Korean authorities conceded unlimited circulation of Dai-Ichi banknotes in exchange for another loan, which practically designated Dai-Ichi Bank as

360-687: The Yalu River in Andong . The transfer also included the new building initially planned by Dai-Ichi Bank for itself in Seoul, then still under construction and which became the Bank of Korea's head office . Following the Japan–Korea Treaty of 1910 and full annexation, the Bank of Korea was renamed the Bank of Chōsen in 1911. It was the direct predecessor of today's Bank of Korea . Overall, Dai-Ichi Bank's actions in

400-468: The central bank of the Korean Empire. Dai-Ichi's banknote issuance expanded rapidly, from a total under 5 million years over the three years 1902–1904 to over 8 million in 1905 alone, then gradually increasing to reach nearly 12 million yen in 1909. Following the Japan–Korea Treaty of 1905 which reduced the Korean Empire to a Japanese protectorate, the dominant status of Dai-Ichi Bank in Korea became

440-517: The 1876 treaty and were only agreed upon in 1883. On that occasion Paul Georg von Möllendorff , a German adviser to the Korean royal court, negotiated a $ 24,000 loan (denominated in Mexican silver dollars ) from Dai-Ichi National Bank to finance the setup costs of the Korean Customs Service, which was collateralized with future tariff revenue. That same year, Dai-Ichi Bank received permission from

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480-470: The 1990s, Korea Commercial Bank was still one of the five most prominent banks in South Korea , alongside Chohung Bank , Korea First Bank , Hanil Bank , and Seoul Bank . It suffered from the 1997 Asian financial crisis , however, and was eventually merged with Hanil Bank to form Woori Bank . Modern financial development in Korea started with the Japan–Korea Treaty of 1876 and the subsequent entry into

520-659: The Emperor Gojong of the Korean Empire , was a Korean bank aimed to preserve Korea's national capital assets against the growing influences of the Japanese banks over Korea's finances. The building itself was designed by the architecture and construction office of the Takjibu, the Ministry of Finance of the Korean Empire . The construction of this building was finished in July 1909. However,

560-554: The Gwangtonggwan building has a symmetrical layout which roughly covers 774 square meters. The first floor of this building was designed and served as a bank, while the second floor was designed for conference rooms and offices. When it was originally constructed in 1909, the building had Ionic pilasters , but during the reconstruction following the fire in 1914, the Ionic capitals were removed and baroque decorations were added instead to

600-513: The Japanese Finance Ministry for its Korean branches to issue yen-denominated banknotes, which the ministry granted in May 1902. Meanwhile, Dai-Ichi Bank remained the dominant financier of the Korean government, despite Emperor Gojong 's attempt to foster an alternative system with the foundation of Daehan Cheon-il Bank in early 1899. In the autumn of 1900, difficult loan negotiations with

640-501: The Japanese government that its bills be used to pay for customs duties in Korea's open ports. In February 1884, Dai-ichi Bank and von Möllendorff agreed that the bank's branches would collect all local customs duties on behalf of the Joseon dynasty government. Dai-Ichi Bank's $ 24,000 loan to the Korean government was disbursed simultaneously; it was followed by a second loan in January 1895 and

680-584: The Joseon government created a department to oversee banking activities in the country. Several attempts were made in the following years to establish banks, including the Joseon Bank (1896), Hanseong Bank (1897) and Daehan Bank (1898), but most of these turned out to be short-lived. On 30 January 1899, the Daehan Cheon-il Bank was created by merchants of Hanseong (now Seoul ) with ostensible backing by

720-499: The Joseon government, which two years before had proclaimed the Korean Empire . Only Korean nationals were allowed to be shareholders, and the government was itself the bank's largest investor. Ownership of the bank was reserved for a narrow elite, with the total number of shareholders growing to only 24 in 1901 and 38 at end-1902. The bank's first president was Joseon senior official Min Byeong-seok  [ ko ] , who in 1902

760-509: The Korean government became acutely dependent on Japanese actions. . In mid-1898, Shibusawa traveled to Korea to negotiate the revocation of an earlier prohibition by the newly proclaimed Korean Empire of using stamped silver yen coins that had become important for the bank's business. At the turn of the century, Dai-Ichi Bank started to issue sight bills to facilitate its collection of customs duties, and in October 1901 applied for permission from

800-448: The Korean government required another trip to Korea by Shibusawa; Dai-Ichi Bank made more loans to the Korean Empire in the early 1900s. In total, the share of Korea in the bank's total loan book rose from 2 percent in 1879 to over 15 percent by in 1905, and its share of Dai-Ichi Bank's total profits reached 29 percent in 1905. Attempts by the embattled Korean state to resist Dai-Ichi's monetary role in Korea proved futile, and crumbled as

840-568: The Ministry of Finance where he had drafter the National Banking Decree of December 1872 under the leadership of minister Ōkubo Toshimichi . In 1873, with the decree's entry into force allowing the licensing of privately owned banks of issue , Shibusawa reorganized the venture and obtained from the government a license to operate it as the first of all Japan's national banks , thus its original name Tokyo Dai-Ichi Kokuritsu Ginkō ( lit.   ' First National Bank of Tokyo ' ) It

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880-632: The Mitsui name in 1954. In 1971, it merged with Nippon Kangyo Bank to form the Dai-Ichi Kangyo Bank , subsequently Japan's largest bank and a predecessor to Mizuho Financial Group . In 1872, the Mitsui and Ōno merchant families created the Mitsui-Ōno Joint Bank as a joint venture between their respective financial operations. To manage it, they hired Shibusawa Eiichi, until then an official at

920-563: The Taiwanese precedent. Dai-Ichi Bank kept branches in Seoul and Busan but later in 1909 transferred all its other Korean branches and offices to the Bank of Korea, totalling 220 regular employees and 121 support staff, in Chinnampo, Gunsan, Incheon, Mokpo and Wonsan (see above) plus those established in the meantime in Daegu , Hamhung , Kaesong , Kyongsong , Masan , Pyongyang , Songjin , and across

960-670: The country of joint-stock Japanese banks, which themselves had only been established in the course of that same decade. Thus, the Dai-Ichi Bank ("First Bank"), Japan's first joint-stock bank created by Shibusawa Eiichi in 1873, opened a branch in Busan in 1878, followed by Chemulpo (nowadays Incheon ) in 1883. The Eighteenth Bank , established in Nagasaki in 1877, similarly opened a branch in Chemulpo in 1890. The dominance of Japanese banks created dismay among Korean reformers . In 1894,

1000-446: The debate, and the finance ministry rationalized the decision as preferable to preserve financial stability. The new institution, originally named the Bank of Korea ( Japanese : 韓國銀行 , romanized :  Kankoku Ginkō , Korean : 한국은행 , romanized :  Hanguk Eunhaeng ), was created by Japanese law of July 1909, largely modelled on the Bank of Taiwan (est. 1898) but with a greater role for Itō in its governance than in

1040-437: The early 1900s, before handing over that role to the newly established Bank of Chōsen in 1909. It remained one of the main Japanese banks together with Mitsubishi Bank , Mitsui Bank , Sumitomo Bank , and Yasuda / Fuji Bank . In 1943, Dai-Ichi Bank merged with Mitsui Bank to form Teikoku Bank ( Japanese : 帝国銀行 , lit.   ' Imperial Bank ' ). In 1948, Dai-Ichi Bank was spun off again from Teikoku, which retook

1080-498: The early 1980s. Following the 1997 Asian financial crisis , Korea Commercial Bank was rescued by the Korea Deposit Insurance Corporation and merged with the similarly troubled Hanil Bank . The merged and recapitalized entity, in which the government held a 95-percent equity stake, was named Hanvit Bank (sometimes transcribed as Hanbit), acquired the distressed Peace Bank  [ ko ] in 2001, and

1120-475: The end of the 19th century, Dai-Ichi Bank's near-monopoly on banking activities in Korea had been eroded by the belated entry of other Japanese banks, such as the Eighteenth Bank from 1890 onwards, and also by the gradual appearance of homegrown Korean banks such as Hanseong Bank , established in 1897. Instead, Dai-Ichi Bank played an increasingly central role in the reform of Korea's monetary system, for which

1160-553: The new Dai-Ichi Bank and the new Teikoku Bank in 1948. Dai-Ichi grew dynamically in Japan's rapid postwar economic expansion, and eventually merged in 1971 with Nippon Kangyo Bank to form Dai-Ichi Kangyo Bank . Dai-Ichi Bank's first Korean branch was opened in 1878 in Chemulpo (now Incheon ). A proper branch building was erected there from 1887 to 1899, and after 1909 became the Incheon of

1200-586: The old Korean tradition of writing. Two other entrances on either side of the main entrance also are flanked by two Tuscan columns, but are no longer used as entrances. Daehan Cheon-il Bank The Daehan Cheon-il Bank ( Korean : 대한천일은행 ), sometimes transcribed as Daehancheonil Bank , was the first viable domestic joint-stock bank in Korea , established in 1899. In 1911 it was renamed Chōsen Commercial Bank ( 조선상업은행 , also transcribed as Joseon Sangup Bank ), then in 1950 Korea Commercial Bank ( 한국상업은행 ). By

1240-550: The pilasters. Today's building has circular and arched windows, decorated pilasters , two baroque-styled domes with finials , two dormer windows , and a detailed pediment consisting of a half-circular window. Rejecting references to a traditional Korean architecture, the architects designed Gwangtonggwan in an eclectic and westernized style. The main entrance is flanked by two Tuscan columns, and its entablature bears an inscription, "朝鮮商業銀行鐘路支店" (조선상업은행 종로지점; Joseon Sangup Bank Jongno Branch), inscribed from right to left following

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1280-523: The respective operations of Chōsen Commercial Bank were taken over by public authorities on both sides of the 38th parallel . In North Korea , they were soon merged into the central bank within the country's monobank system . In South Korea , Chōsen Commercial Bank was renamed Korea Commercial Bank on 24 April 1950. It was listed on the Korea Exchange in 1956, and privatized in 1972, ahead of other Korean commercial banks that were only privatized in

1320-401: The street level of the newly erected Gwangtonggwan building, which had just been erected by the Takjibu (financial department) of the Korean imperial government on the thoroughfare later known as Namdaemunno in central Seoul. (The upper level was used as a public assembly hall.) Gwangtonggwan is consequently viewed as the oldest standing bank building in Korea. In 1911, Daehan Cheon-il Bank

1360-475: The three decades following its first Busan establishment in 1878 have led to its depiction as the "primary agent of Japanese financial imperialism" in Korea. In Japan, Dai-Ichi and all other national banks were stripped of their banknote issuance privilege in 1883, shortly after the establishment of the Bank of Japan. In 1943, Dai-ichi Bank and Mitsui Bank , a Mitsui zaibatsu company, merged to form Teikoku Bank (lit. Imperial Bank of Japan). Teikoku Bank

1400-437: Was also the country's first joint-stock company or kabushiki gaisha . Dai-Ichi National Bank issued 753,195 yen in its own banknotes in 1873, and its banknote circulation peaked at over 1 million yen by mid-1874. After that, it struggled to maintain its notes in circulation because many of them were redeemed in specie . In 1875, the Ōno family was bankrupted. Mitsui Hachirōemon became the bank's dominant shareholder, but he

1440-507: Was renamed by the Japanese colonial authorities as Chōsen Commercial Bank. In 1924, it merged with Chōsen Industry Bank ( 조선실업은행 , established 1913 as Gyeongseong Bank; 경성은행 ), and moved its head office to the latter's building, across the street northeast from the Bank of Chōsen on the same side of Namdaemunro. The building was demolished in 1965. With the division of Korea , as with other banks previously controlled by Japanese interests,

1480-552: Was subsequently renamed Woori Bank in 2002. Dai-Ichi Bank The Dai-Ichi Bank ( Japanese : 第一銀行 , lit.   ' First Bank ' ), known from its establishment in 1873 to 1896 as Dai-Ichi Kokuritsu Bank ( lit.   ' First National Bank ' ) was a major Japanese bank headquartered in Tokyo . Founded and developed for several decades by Shibusawa Eiichi , it expanded into Korea as early as 1878, and became that country's dominant bank as well as its bank of issue in

1520-414: Was succeeded by Prince Imperial Yeong , himself succeeded by Kim Gi-yeong ( 김기영 ), one of the bank's merchant founders, in 1906, and by Lee Bong-rae in 1909. The bank became associated with Russian interests and suffered from Russia's defeat in the Russo-Japanese War , during which it had to suspend operations. It resumed its activity in 1906. In 1909, the Daehan Cheon-il Bank moved its head office to

1560-464: Was the largest bank in Japan in terms of assets when it was inaugurated. Teikoku Bank, however, could not expand its business freely due to Japan's involvement in World War II . Furthermore, former Dai-ichi employees and Mitsui employees did not get along well because of the difference in corporate culture between them. As a result of deteriorating performance, Teikoku Bank was divided into two banks,

1600-604: Was unwilling to use it as a vehicle for his business strategy and was further annoyed by the forced transfer of his firm's iconic building to the Dai-Ichi Bank at the instigation of the Japanese government. By end-1876, the bank was still majority-owned by the Mitsui family but it was increasingly taking an independent course under the leadership of Shibusawa who had meanwhile built up a significant minority stake. Unlike most of Japan's early joint-stock banks who were fiercely local, Dai-Ichi also managed to attract equity investors from

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