Industry or Instrument?
The chapter analyzes Spain’s and Korea’s upgrading strategies from the perspective of large banks. The chapter shows that Spain’s and Korea’s approaches were based on two different interpretations of the banking sector. One considered banking as an industry in its own right with high potential for upgrading. The other saw banking as an input for manufacturing. The chapter shows that these two views led to the emergence of a globally competitive banking sector in Spain, but prevented a similar outcome in Korea. The chapter comprises five sections. After the introduction, section 3.2 characterizes the structure of the banking sectorin late industrializing economies and the changes in global banking since the 1980s. Sections 3.3 and 3.4 analyze the role of banking in Spain’s and Korea’s models and how these roles affected the trajectory of Spanish and Korean banks. Section 3.5 takes stock, concludes, and sets the stage for the next chapter.