142 CO-OPEEATTON IN DANISH AGRICULTURE 



might be to the nation if all banking operations connected with 

 the greatest industry of the country were transferred to one 

 single bank ; they, therefore, asked all banks to join in opposition 

 to the proposed co-operative bank, and even contemplated 

 approaching the Government in the matter. At a co-operative 

 congress held in 1906, a committee was appointed to draw up a 

 scheme for the bank and obtain binding signatures from the 

 co-operative societies willing to join. In 1909, 236 societies 

 had joined and signed a guarantee of £37,000. It was decided 

 to found the bank — although it was not yet to start operations. 

 A committee of representatives and a board of directors were 

 elected, the chairman of the latter being Anders Nielsen, 

 Svejstrup Ostergaard, already mentioned several times in 

 preceding chapters. At a general meeting held in 1913 it was 

 decided to call upon the guarantors for the sums then agreed 

 to, and to make preparation for the bank to start operation, 

 and in October, 1914, the Co-operative Bank opened its offices 

 in Aarhus. The object of the bank, as explained by the manag- 

 ing director, was to obtain higher prices for bank drafts in 

 sterling or marks, to grant cheaper loans, and allow higher 

 interest on deposits, but primarily to be ready to support 

 every reasonable co-operative scheme submitted to it. 



The original idea had been simply so to arrange monetary 

 matters that co-operative societies could be financed by their 

 own members. This, it was soon found, could only be accom- 

 pHshed by means of a bank, and a bank, it was soon reahsed, 

 could only exist, if prepared to carry on all kinds of banking 

 business for the benefit of its members. This, therefore, is the 

 avowed object of the Co-operative Bank. The bank is formed 

 by co-operative societies and savings banks, and such societies 

 and savings banks can become members by taking shares in a 

 fixed proportion to the total turnover of the co-operative 

 societies or to the money paid in to the savings banks during 

 the last completed year before joining. Private people can 

 co-operate by joining a " bank society," which then becomes 

 a member and takes shares in proportion to the number of its 

 individual members. A further kind of members are the co- 

 operative village banks — to be described below. These take 

 shares like the savings banks in proportion to the money on 



