Kinroku government bonds

Based on the Ordinance for the Issuance of Gold-Rock Public Bonds issued by the Dajokan on August 5, 1876 (Meiji 9), the Meiji government issued these bonds to nobles, feudal lords, and samurai. In exchange for these bonds, the payment of family stipends was abolished. The interest rates of the bonds were 5%, 6%, 7%, and 10%, and nine certificates were issued in denominations of 5 yen, 10 yen, 25 yen, 50 yen, 100 yen, 300 yen, 500 yen, 1000 yen, and 5000 yen. The bonds were fixed for five years from the year of issue (1877), and redemption began by lottery from the sixth year, with a total of 30 years for redemption. The government issued these to over 310,000 stipend holders, totaling over 173.84 million yen.

This eliminated the family stipend expenditures that had accounted for one-quarter to one-third of government revenue, and helped the government's finances as it promoted modernization. These bonds were initially prohibited from being sold so that impoverished samurai would not quickly give them up, but when this ban was lifted in September 1678, many of them ended up in the hands of merchants. In addition, it was permitted to invest these bonds in the establishment of national banks, and samurai-run national banks were born in various places.

[Kunio Niwa]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

1876年（明治9）8月5日太政官(だじょうかん)布告金禄公債証書発行条例に基づき、明治政府が、公家(くげ)、領主、武士らに交付した公債。この公債交付と引き換えに、家禄支給は廃止された。公債の利率は、5分、6分、7分、1割に分かれ、5円、10円、25円、50円、100円、300円、500円、1000円、5000円の9種類の証書が発行された。公債は、発行の年（1877）から5年間据え置き、6年目から抽選で償還を始め、通計30か年で償還を終えるとされた。政府はこれを有禄者31万人余に交付し、総額は1億7384万円余に達した。

　これによって、政府歳入の4分の1から3分の1を占めていた家禄支出は解消し、近代化を進める政府の財政を助けた。この公債は、窮乏した士族がすぐ手離さないよう当初は売買が禁止されていたが、78年9月にこの禁が解かれると、多くが商人らの手に渡った。また、この公債を出資して国立銀行を設立することが認められたので、各地に士族による国立銀行が生まれた。

［丹羽邦男］

出典　小学館　日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)について　情報 | 凡例