1619 - A bank in every town

To remedy the shortage of money, Chancellor Axel Oxenstierna proposed setting up a bank in every town. This would make money circulate more quickly and stimulate trade.

Oxenstierna suggested setting up a bänk, a word he borrowed from the original Italian term banca. No Swedish word as yet existed for this entirely new concept. But Oxenstierna's proposal led nowhere. The Crown did not consider it could afford to guarantee the bank and the burghers were not convinced enough that the bank would have the desired effect to be willing to support it themselves.