Banking (CTP1)

Banking is an advance in Civilization: Call to Power.
==Summary==
Banking, the third Economic Advance, makes lending and borrowing possible and so provides capital for new ventures. To collect the capital for these loans, Civilizations create the Bank, a hallowed financial institution aimed at increasing a city's gold by 50%.
== Great Library entry ==
The first banks developed in response to the great risk of early trading. Bandits, uncertain foreign markets, and a multitude of foreign currencies made caravans or trade ships (funded by a merchant or investor) very vulnerable. Without a way to spread the risk, the caravan's failure meant the end of a merchant's career. Banking helped to change this by splitting risk between bank and merchant. The Romans developed banking into a robust system of mortgages, loans, and credits. With banking, capital was available to expand trade and spread commerce widely.