Show RADICAL CHANGES TRANSFORM BANKING national commission ses sees C hanging changing opinion on branch banking issue studies group and chain banks NEW YORK i modification of tho the attitude of bankers on the long disputed branch banking question to la forecast la in a review and report covering rapid changes going on an la in banking I 1 issued beneby here by the economic policy commission siona of the american hm oilcan bankers association clathon cl cia tion the report however atler after referring to recent proposals that national a banks lbanks be glyen branch banking powers within the business territory surrounding their location declares that we donot do not believe that so ao colled called trado trade area branch banking la is likely to gain the support of any large percentage cola tace of the banking fraternity th the commission flays that the most moat imp important dev development i that has at fectea Ameri american cai banking la in recent years involves involve s the rapid growth of multiple banking organizations in the form farra of group chainani cha chain inand and ing systems and adds that we present preot this report as an unprejudiced economic study and have no theories or policies to urge at this time the no statement says that the commissions information indicates there are now group or chain bank systems which control 1922 bankland banks bank sand and i in aggregate resources and that there are only six states and the Ik district strict of columbia where it does doea not find any group organizations the commissions investigation we have been in touch with the managers of many important boats bank groups the report says aside from the obvious economies of centralized operation and control a number of these organization heads very frankly tell us that they do not feel that the system has been in operation and tested long enough to justify them in making positive or sweeping statements as to its advantages or disadvantages compared to unit banking the banking and currency committee of the house which Is conducting an investigation into banking developments has called a number of operating heads beads of some of the great group systems these men declared that they found under certain condl conditions definite nite operating and economic advantage in fa both group and branch banking over independent unit banking some thought group banking was only a transitional stage that branch banking was waa preferable and it if it were permitted on an extensive enough scale they would change their groups over to branch systems others hold held that group banking was preferable some held that the ideal plan was a combination of the two with group bank units for localities strong enough t to 0 support complete banking institutions and with branch offices extend ing further into the smaller places requiring banking services but not large enough to support complete banks several of these who advocated multiple banking declared that nevertheless they believed there would always be room for vigorous independent unit bank competitors government officials official express views view the comptroller of the currency recommended that national banks be given branch banking powers within areas the governor of the federal reserve board appeared to be in general agreement with the comptroller he said there were banks and branches a total of banking offices that in this total offices were either branches or bank members of groups or both leaving banking institutions that might be definitely termed independent unit banks having no branches and in no way connected with group affiliations he said eald all tho the banks had total loans and investments oc of of which the group and branch systems held or more than halt half ho he opposed nationwide nation wide branch banking at present but said that ultimately ultima I 1 ma tely it li bankers ankers became trained and experienced la in the larger technique oi of trade ar area ea banking he thought it would in time evolve nation wida vide branch blanch banking under control of relatively low lew banks but he did not believe this would mean monopoly or I 1 lack k of competition co he favored branch over ever group banking which however he said represented an economic development along trade area lines and would spread unless something else were substituted and thought trade trad area ra branch banking would servo serve this purpose it la is the intention of the commission to develop its own studies in those these questions watch carefully every move that to la made and every bit of information that may develop in this connection and keep itself prepared to give an unbiased and accurate statement of the facts of tho the case whenever that is desired the report concludes conclude i |