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Tuula Sturk
The United States Postal Savings System was a postal savings system signed into law by President William Howard Taft and operated by the United States Post Office Department, predecessor of the United States Postal Service, from January 1, 1911, until July 1, 1967.[1][2]
The Postal Savings System was established as a result of lobbying by farmers and workers with grievances against the private banking system due to numerous bank closures and inadequate credit opportunities.[3] After the Panic of 1907, the Republican Party supported a postal banking system, while Democrats preferred deposit insurance. After Republican William Howard Taft won the 1908 United States presidential election, the United States Postal Savings System began in 1910.[4]
Most other postal savings systems invested deposits in public debt, but in 1910 Americans believed that the small national debt of the United States was temporary, so 95% of deposits in the US system were redeposited in national banks within the same state that paid 2.25%, and in public debt if such banks were unavailable. To avoid competing with banks that paid 3.5% interest on deposits on 1910, the system was fixed to 2% by law.[4] Its creators expected that the postal savings system would stabilize the economy, as when customers withdrew funds during a bank run they would deposit into the postal system, which would redeposit into the banking system. Maureen O'Hara described the mechanism as a "gerbil-like treadmill". (She wrote that when several large banks that had gained deposits during the March 2023 United States bank failures redeposited funds into First Republic Bank, "The gerbil lives again!")[6]
At its peak in 1947, the system held almost $3.4 billion in deposits. In addition to holding cash deposits, the system also sold fixed-term bonds and operated a Savings Card program. These cards provided spaces for a fixed number of postage stamps, each purchased for a few cents. Once filled, the cards could be presented for credit to a savings account in the system.
According to a 2019 analysis, "the program was initially used by non-farming immigrant populations for short-term saving, then as a safe haven during the Great Depression, and finally as long-term investment for the wealthy during the 1940s... Postal Savings was only a partial substitute for traditional banks, as locations with banks often still heavily used postal savings."[8]
The system originally had a natural advantage over deposit-taking private banks because the deposits were always backed by "the full faith and credit of the United States Government." However, because the establishment of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation gave a guarantee to depositors in private banks, the system lost its advantage in trust. The rise of United States Savings Bonds during and after World War II also drew funds away from the system. By the 1960s, with American banks fully recovered and more accepting of consumer deposits, the Postal Savings System was seen as redundant. A campaign by bankers dating back to the service's introduction had lobbied to create this impression, even though there were 1 million depositors.[9] The government passed legislation requiring it to stop accepting deposits on July 1, 1967, and to transfer remaining deposits (approximately $50 million) to a claims fund of the United States Treasury. In 1971, most of the fund was distributed to state and local authorities in proportion to the obligations of individual post offices. Outstanding deposit claims were voided in 1985.[citation needed]
On March 26, 1911, the locations of the central depositories for the first 19 states were established, followed the next day by 25 others. The post offices were selected by merit rather than by geography, based on those with the best efficiency record in the state.[10]
Postal savings systems provide depositors who do not have access to banks a safe and convenient method to save money. Many nations have operated banking systems involving post offices to promote saving money among the poor.
In 1861, Great Britain became the first nation to offer such an arrangement. It was supported by Sir Rowland Hill, who successfully advocated the penny post, and William Ewart Gladstone, then Chancellor of the Exchequer, who saw it as a cheap way to finance the public debt. At the time, banks were mainly in the cities and largely catered to wealthy customers. Rural citizens and the poor had no choice but to keep their funds at home or on their persons.
The British system first offered only savings accounts. In 1880, it also became a retail outlet for government bonds, and in 1916 introduced war savings certificates, which were renamed National Savings Certificates in 1920.[2]In 1956, it launched a lottery bond, the Premium Bond, which became its most popular savings certificate.[2] Post Office Savings Bank became National Savings Bank in 1969, later renamed National Savings and Investments (NS&I), an agency of HM Treasury. While continuing to offer National Savings services, the (then) General Post Office, created the National Giro in 1968 (privatized as Girobank and acquired by Alliance & Leicester in 1989).
Many other countries adopted such systems soon afterwards. Japan established a postal savings system in 1875 and the Netherlands government started a systems in 1881 under the name Rijkspostspaarbank (national postal savings bank); this was followed by many other countries over the next 50 years. The later part of the 20th century saw a reversal where these systems were abolished or privatized.
In Austria, the Österreichische Post used to own the Österreichische Postsparkasse (P.S.K.). This financial institute was bought and merged by the BAWAG in 2005. In April 2020, Österreichische Post launched a new postal bank, bank99.[3]
Brazil instituted a postal banking system in 2002, where the national postal service (ECT) formed a partnership with the largest private bank in the country (Bradesco) to provide financial services at post offices. The current partnership is with Bank of Brazil.
In Bulgaria, the postal banking system was a subsidiary of Bulgarian Posts until 1991, when Bulgarian Postbank was created. In the years that followed, Bulgarian Postbank was privatized and the relationship between post offices and bank offices became weaker. Postal banking services ceased to be available in post offices in 2011.
In the People's Republic of China, the Postal Savings Bank of China (zh:中国邮政储蓄银行) was split from China Post in 2007 and established as a state-owned limited company. It continues to provide banking services at post offices and, at the same time, some separated branches.
In Finland, Postisäästöpankki ("Post Savings Bank") was founded in 1887. In 1970 its name was shortened to Postipankki ("Post Bank"). In 1998 it was changed to a commercial bank named Leonia Bank. Later, it was merged with an insurance company to form Sampo Group, and the bank was renamed Sampo Bank. It had a few own offices, but also post offices performed its banking operations until 2000. In 2007, Sampo Bank was sold to the Danish Danske Bank.
Deutsche Postbank has a postal banking system. Deutsche Postbank was a subsidiary of Deutsche Post until 2008, when 30% of Deutsche Post's shares were sold to Deutsche Bank.[8] Postal banking services are still available at all branches of Deutsche Post and Deutsche Postbank.
The postal savings bank of Hungary was established on 1 February 1886 by order of Lax IX of 1885. This act initially only authorized savings accounts, but was later expanded by Law XXXIV of 1889, which authorized "checks and clearing" starting on 1 January 1890.[citation needed] In 1919 the Postal Savings Bank notes were issued under the decree of the Revolutionary Governing Council of the Hungarian Soviet Republic by the Magyar Postatakarékpénztár (Hungarian Postal Savings Bank).
India Post has provided an avenue for managing savings to the people living in rural or the urban poor, underserved by the formal banking system, since 1882 when Post Office Savings Bank was established.[9][10]
An Post also provide saving stamps for children, from the 1980s stamps cost 50p/50c, each stamp was place in a card. There were 10 places on each side of the card, you could exchange the stamps for their value at any post office. Prior to this stamps cost 10p and allowed children to save just IR1.
Japan Post Bank, part of the post office was the world's largest savings bank with 198 trillion yen (US$1.7 trillion) of deposits as of 2006,[13] much from conservative, risk-averse citizens. The state-owned Japan Post Bank business unit of Japan Post was formed in 2007, as part of a ten-year privatization programme, intended to achieve fully private ownership of the postal system by 2017.[14]
Korea Post, operated by South Korean government, has its postal banking and postal insurance business since 1982. Banking counter and ATM is available in all post office, excluding postal agencies and delivery centers. Korea Post ATM is connected with all national and regional banks via KFTC. Banking counter is also opened for Korea Development Bank, Industrial Bank, Citibank Korea, and Jeonbuk Bank customers.
In 1881 the Dutch government founded the Rijkspostspaarbank (National Postal Savings Bank). In 1986 it was privatised, together with the Postgiro service, as the Postbank N.V. Postbank merged with a commercial bank that would eventually become ING Bank.
Post Office Savings Bank was established in 1867 by the New Zealand government to give New Zealand investors a place to deposit their savings.[16][17] This included the provision of children's savings accounts known as Post Office Squirrel savings account. The Post Office Savings bank was split into PostBank in 1987 and was acquired by ANZ Bank New Zealand two years later ending the bank.
Postbanken was founded in 1948 after major political battle as Norges Postsparebank, however the maximum amount allowed to be saved per person was set to NOK 10,000. In 1948 the bank had services provided at 3,600 post offices and post outlets. It was sold in 1999 and became part of the commercial bank DNB ASA.
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