391,302 264,016

81, 992, 714

2,028,522

268,617

6,000,000

1,158,000

1,966, 940

181,239

REPORT OF THE COMPTROLLER OF THE CURRENCY.

TREASURY DEPARTMENT,

OFFICE OF THE COMPTROLLER OF THE CURRENCY,

Washington, D. C., December 3, 1917.

SIR: As required by section 333 of the Revised Statutes of the United States, I respectfully submit herewith the Fifty-fifth Annual Report of the operations of the Currency Bureau, covering the 12 months ending October 31, 1917.

I have the honor to inform the Congress that the national banks of the United States are stronger, safer, more closely observant of the laws, and more efficiently managed than ever before. This encouraging fact is especially impressive and important now while the life of this Nation, and of the great alliance of which we are part, depends so largely on our ability to furnish the enormous financial resources indispensable for victory.

There are now in operation nearly 7,700 national banks. Their resources amounted on November 20, 1917, to $18,553,197,000, exceeding by $2,009,698,000, the greatest resources ever before reported. They are $2,527,878,000 greater than the combined resources of all the State banks (doing commercial business) and of all reporting private banks and trust companies, as of June 20, 1917, the latest date for which we have those returns.

The resources of the national banks have doubled in less than nine years, or since February 5, 1909, when the total resources of all the national banks in the United States were shown by the reports to be $9,221,194,000. The increase in the resources of national banks in one year since November 17, 1916, was $3,032,992,000.

COMPARATIVE GROWTH OF NATIONAL AND STATE BANKS SINCE BEGINNING OF FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM, 1914 TO 1917.

The 12 Federal reserve banks commenced business on November 16, 1914. The last statement of condition prior to that event was made by the national banks on October 31, 1914, at which time the resources of the national banks amounted to.. $11,492,453,000.

After three years of operation under the Federal reserve act the resources of the national banks at the date of the call of November 20, 1917, were reported at.. $18,553,197,000

This was an increase of $7,060,744,000, or 61.44 per cent.

The last report compiled of the State banks, savings banks, private banks, and trust companies of the country prior to the inauguration of the Federal Reserve System was made on the date of June 30, 1914, and the resources of all such reporting State banks and trust companies then amounted to.. $15,489,207,000.

After the lapse of three years the total resources of the banking institutions under State supervision, according to the latest compiled report that of June 20, 1917-amounted to $20,836,357,000, an increase of 34.52 per cent.

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The national banks, in the three years which have elapsed since the inauguration of the Federal Reserve System, have increased their resources at a far greater rate than that shown by the State banks and trust companies for the three-year period ended June 20, 1917. While the average increase in resources of all banks, both National and State, was 45.49 per cent for the periods covered, it is worthy of note that the increase in the national banks was 61.44 per cent and in the State banking institutions only 34.42 per cent.

COMPARISON OF NATIONAL AND STATE BANK FAILURES FOR 20 YEARS.

An analysis of the record of bank failures for the past 20 years furnishes gratifying evidence as to the strength and stability of national banks, as compared with the record of banking institutions not under Federal supervision.

The figures show that in June, 1897, there were 3,610 national banks with resources of 3,563 million dollars, and that there were 5,847 reporting State banks, including private bankers and trust companies, with resources of 4,258 million dollars. It is estimated that these reporting banks represented approximately 90 per cent of the total number.

Since June, 1897, 220 national banks have failed. In the same period the records show that there have been 1,119 State bank and Trust Company failures-five times as many failures of State banking institutions as of national banks.

The resources of State banks on June 20, 1917, were reported at 20,836 million dollars. The resources of the national banks at the same time were 16,151 million dollars. The liabilities of the State banks that failed in this period are reported at $507,374,000, while the total liabilities of the national banks which failed in the same period are reported at only $155,170,000. The liabilities of the failed State banks and trust companies therefore have amounted to more than three times as much as the liabilities of the national banks which have failed in the same period.

The percentage of liabilities of State banks which have failed in this period to the total liabilities of all reporting State banks on June 20, 1917, was 2.43 per cent. The percentage of liabilities of the national banks which failed in the same period to total resources of national banks in June, 1917, was 0.96 per cent.

OUR BANKING POWER NOW TWO AND ONE-HALF TIMES AS GREAT AS BANKING POWER OF THE WHOLE WORLD IN 1890.

The total banking power of the United States, as represented by capital, surplus, and profits, circulation and deposits of our national banks and other reporting banks and trust companies, together with the estimated funds of this character in nonreporting banks, and including also the paid-in capital and deposits of the 12 Federal