Thomas Joplin

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Thomas Joplin, 1790-1847.

Newcastle timber merchant and banker.

Thomas Joplin exploded into print with his 1822 essay on banking, forwarding reform of the Bank of England charter to expand banking in Britain. Following the crisis of 1826-27, Parliament, in an effort to revive Britain's banking system, initiated a series of reforms, notably repealing the old prohibition on the formation of joint-stock banks - albeit limiting their area of operation to a outside of London. But Joplin, already in the supplement to the third edition of the essay (1823), had noticed that the Bank of England's charter prevented only the formation of other note-issuing but not deposit-taking banks within the London radius.

Although the government's counsel admitted Joplin's interpretation of the clause was legally correct, private banks were reluctant to embrace the scheme so long as doubts lingered. As the Bank of England's charter was up for renewal, Joplin went on the pamphleteering offensive, urging the government to reform. Overruling the Bank's protests, in 1833, the government assented to Joplin, and inserted a declaratory clause, making it explicitly legal for deposit-taking joint-stock banks to establish themselves inside of London.

Joplin's campaign led to an explosion of the creation of joint-stock banks within the London radius in the 1830s. Joplin himself was a founder of the National Provincial Bank.

But the Bank of England did not admit defeat, and pushed for the creation of a new Parliamentary Commission in 1836 to examine the "danger" of the new joint-stock banks. Joplin went on a propaganda offensive, not only in pamphlets but also founded a magazine in 1837, The Economist, to popularize his program, making sure to forward a copy to each member of parliament (Joplin's short-lived rag should not be confused with the namesake publication, founded by James Wilson in 1843, that continues to this day.)

However, Joplin's reforms got a serious setback in the Panic of 1837, where the easy credit and speculative excesses of the new joint-stock banks were blamed. This would pave the way for the heavy-handed Bank Acts of 1844.

Joplin is commonly credited as developer of the "currency principle" - effectively, 100% gold reserve currency - behind the Currency School's position in the debate leading up to the 1844 Bank Reform Act.

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Major Works of Thomas Joplin

[J.Jocelyn] Essay on Money and Bullion, Wherein are considered, Value Intrinsick and Extrinsick. Money and Bullion compared. Mr. Locke's Considerations concerning Raising the Value of Coin. The Present State of our Coin. And a Scheme for Raising the Value of our Coin, as well as Gold and Silvern, 1718 [List of works on Money and Banking: Jevons, NY Public Library]
On the General Principles and Present Practice of Banking, in England and Scotland, with Observations on the Justice and Policy of an immediate Alteration in the Charter of the Bank of England, and the Measures to be pursued in order to effect it, 1822, [(2nd ed. in Pamphleteer, 1824) (3rd ed., 1822), (4th ed. in Outlines, 1823) (5th ed. 1826)
Outlines of a System of Political Economy; written with a view to prove to government and the country that the Cause of the present agricultural distress is entirely artificial; and to suggest a plan for the management of the currency by which it may be remedied now, and any recurrence of similar evils be prevented in the future. 1823.
Views on the Subject of Corn and Currency, 1826
Views on the Corn Bill of 1827: and other measures of government ; together with a further exposition of certain principles on corn and currency before published, 1828
Views on the Currency: in which the connexion between corn and currency is shown, the nature of our system of currency explained, and the merits of the Corn bill, the branch banks, the extension of the bank charter, and the small note act examined, 1828
An Analysis and History of the Currency Question: together with an account of the origin and growth of joint stock banking in England. Comprised in a brief memoir of the writer's connexion with these subjects, 1832
An Examination of the Report of the Joint Stock Bank Committee, [1836 (2nd ed.), 1837 (3rd ed.)]
Tracts on Currency, 1837
Prospectus of an association to promote the establishment of a uniform currency, under one general head, 1840
Currency Reform: Improvement not depreciation, 1844

HET

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Resources on Thomas Joplin

A Digest of the Evidence on the Bank Charter taken before the Committee of 1832, arranged together with the tables under proper heads: to which are prefixed strictures and illustrative remarks, 1833

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