Financial centres as competing clusters

Financial services have been standing out as major activities of large metropolis for centuries. Their localization is the result of constant competitive pressure among these cities. From this importance derives the frequent confusion between finance and town as in the “City” of London and summarized in the notion of “financial centre”. The localization of international financial centres has been anciently and constantly contested among major cities and countries. A financial centre emerges from a central location, through the aggregation of competences and services, under both competition and cooperation. A financial centre emerges slowly, thanks to the development of specialized services in banking, financial markets, supervision and specialized information, all embedded into national and international networks. It must be considered has a cluster or a district, coordinating resources, competences, organizations and demand. The long-term study of financial centres – at least from the 1870s – in their multiple dimensions – local, social, economical, juridical, geographical and historical – is the purpose of different and complementary research projects.

This call is proposed jointly by the participants of two research projects – “Paris, a financial city in global competition” (PSE, supported by the Paris City Council) and “Convergences and divergences of national financial systems” (IDHE, supported by the Agence Nationale de la Recherche).

Papers should be centred on the history of one or several national or regional financial centres during the 19th or 20th Century. All aspects of the subject are welcome. Nevertheless, the organizers want to focus especially the workshop on :
1/ the social dimension of financial centres (prosopographic studies, network analysis of business relationships among financiers and their major clients);
2/ the intra-city geography of “localized systems of production” or “financial clusters”;
3/ the emergence of regulations and microstructures in a financial centre or some of their constituent parts.

The workshop will consist in a brief presentation (5’) by the author, followed by an in-depth discussion. Submission, to be made before December 10th, 2007 to angelo.riva@unimi.it. must include a minimum 10 pages draft of the paper to be presented.
Authors will be notified of acceptation before December 20th 2007.

Working languages are French and English.

Transportation and accommodation costs will be refunded for all accepted submissions

Scientific committee: Patrice Baubeau, Pierre-Cyrille Hautcœur, Michel Lescure, Angelo Riva

Organization committee: Patrice Baubeau, Angelo Riva