From Indenture to Interest: The Impact of Colonial Banking Credit on Rural Social Transformation in Cochinchina (1900–1930)

Abstract

This article investigates the pivotal shift in the rural social structure of Cochinchina between 1900 and 1930, driven by the colonial banking credit system. Amidst the intensification of the second French colonial exploitation, the Banque de l’Indochine (BIC) established a sophisticated financial network through "seasonal loan" institutions and the system of Mutual Agricultural Credit Societies (Sociétés Indochinoises de Crédit Agricole Mutuel - SICAM). The study argues that the replacement of traditional borrowing practices (indentured relations) with modern interest-based relations did not liberate the tenant farmers; instead, it engineered a new mechanism of impoverishment. Colonial credit served as a lever for the great landlords to consolidate land ownership, while poor peasants became ensnared in high-interest debts, leading to profound class differentiation. Utilizing historical methodology and archival data analysis, the author asserts that the colonial banking system was a key factor in the disintegration of traditional village communities, ultimately forging a rural society in Cochinchina deeply marked by colonial capitalism.