The Mad Tycoon of Rome

Chapter 64: Marcus’s Reforms

Marcus felt the attention of everyone focused on him as he stepped onto the platform.

Right in front of him were the praetor Silanus and eight jurists who had helped him suppress the rebellion. They looked at him with admiration and gratitude.

Behind them, however, the twelve aediles still wore skeptical expressions. 

They doubted how realistic and feasible the proposals of a young noble who had grown up in a greenhouse would be.

Marcus was not intimidated by the gaze of the senators and citizens who would lead Rome. 

He looked around the audience with confidence and composure. Some of the senators let out a faint sigh of admiration.

Brutus, Curio, Cassius, and several other young men lined up behind Marcus. Their eyes were filled with determination and resolve.

The noise in the square subsided for a moment as the atmosphere became serious and solemn.

Soon, Marcus’s calm and powerful voice echoed throughout.

“Esteemed senators, beloved citizens of Rome. First of all, I would like to express my deep gratitude for your presence at this rally. My name is Marcus Licinius Crassus II. I am here to make an important proposal for the future of Rome.”

One of the most essential skills for a politician in Rome was eloquence that could sway the masses.

Marcus did not have the brilliant and rich rhetoric of Cicero, but he had charisma that was clear and trustworthy.

It was the result of his background of standing above many people since his childhood and his hard work.

Marcus continued his speech.

“Not long ago, Rome faced a great crisis due to a sinister conspiracy. As you all know, Catilina, the praetor, planned to overthrow Rome. Fortunately, thanks to the wise response of the Senate, the rebellion was quelled. But, the wound that Catilina’s rebellion left us was not shallow.

The debtors who had gained sweet hope fell into despair, and the creditors had to lose sleep every night because of their anxiety. The culprit who caused this problem paid for his crime, but the fundamental problem was not solved.”

The square was silent as a mouse. It was a sign that everyone was focused on Marcus’s story.

Marcus pointed to Eustus, who had been waiting behind him.

“The person who informed us of Catilina’s plan was originally one of his accomplices. But he could not sympathize with Catilina’s excessive rampage and made a courageous decision.

Most of the people who were swayed by Catilina’s claims were good and conscientious citizens. They were just desperate.

They were so desperate that they wanted to believe even Catilina’s empty words. If we do not solve this problem, there may be a second or third Catilina at any time. This time we managed to stop it with the help of the gods, but there is no guarantee that things will go well next time.”

When Marcus said that, Alosius, one of the jurists, stood up from his seat.

“Then are you saying that we should appease the debtors’ discontent? Don’t tell me you’re talking about something like debt cancellation?”

Alosius was a famous asset owner in Rome who had many debtors under him.

He was one of the people who reacted most sensitively to this issue.

Marcus answered without hesitation to his wary question.

“I have no intention of making an absurd claim like full debt cancellation. I am also a creditor who has lent a considerable amount of money.

I just wish that Rome’s economic system would be more sound and smooth. So I prepared various measures with the help of many experts, my outstanding comrades, and my respected father. I will explain them one by one from now on.”

The creditors who were anxious relaxed noticeably at Marcus’s words.

It became clear that he did not intend to incite the people with his young blood.

Marcus started with a mild reform that creditors could accept without much resistance.

“First of all, we need to free those who are burdened with excessive debt. By excessive debt, I mean those who have paid more than their principal but are still suffering from high interest rates.”

As Marcus turned his head slightly, Cassius unfurled a scroll of parchment as if he had been waiting for it.

“According to our own investigation, there are still many debtors who are suffering from usury with interest rates exceeding 40%. A citizen named Publio had to pay more than four times his principal but could not afford the accumulating interest and had to sell his land that was held as collateral.”

A citizen stood up from his seat and pounded his chest with anger.

He was so bitter that his eyes seemed to shed blood tears any moment.

“I am Publio! What he said is all true. My wife had a rare disease and I needed money urgently.

The loan shark who knew my situation demanded a whopping 49% interest rate. I looked around, but all the loan sharks who knew my urgent situation demanded outrageous interest rates. I had no choice but to borrow money and ended up with a huge debt that I could not handle.”

“Tsk tsk tsk… There’s no one as bad as them in the world.”

“Isn’t the interest rate 49% half of the principal at once? This is totally a thief.”

There was an outcry from the citizens and even among the nobles.

It was common in this era to charge high interest rates for large amounts of money.

In fact, there was a record in history that Brutus angered Caesar by receiving 48% interest from Soca.

But charging such high interest rates to fellow Roman citizens was considered crossing the line.

The equestrians who had done such loan business lowered their eyes in case they were exposed.

Marcus did not bother to reveal their names.

It was not a place to shame or blame them.

“We need to help these innocent debtors. Having more bankrupts means less tax revenue.

We need to protect the healthy taxpayers to secure a stable budget. Therefore, I think we should cancel the debt of those who have already paid more than their principal. And to prevent this situation from happening again, we need to clearly establish a legal limit on interest rates.”

“Woo-hoo! That’s right!”

“Let’s do as the noble lord says!”

Applause and cheers erupted from all sides, and the citizens’ shouts soared.

There was no complaint even among the nobles.

The equestrians were willing to accept it as long as it was reasonable.

They had already recovered their principal anyway, so it was not a loss for them.

But there were some people who had different opinions about the legal limit on interest rates.

This time, too, Alosius stood up and questioned him.

“No one would disagree that relieving the burden of the citizens who are under heavy debt is a noble goal. However, limiting the interest rate is something that requires careful consideration. Of course, exploiting the situation of the borrowers and charging exorbitant interest rates should be prohibited. But you must know that high interest rates are set because the likelihood of recovering the principal is low. If you arbitrarily lower the interest rates, the creditors might be reluctant to lend money at all.”

“That’s a valid point. I have prepared a sufficient countermeasure for that issue. But before I explain that, let me tell you more about the relief plan for the debtors.”

Aloysius sat back down on his seat, impressed by the smooth answer.

He was not trying to catch a flaw in Marcus’s proposal, but rather expressing his genuine concern.

He felt confident that Marcus had done thorough research, so he decided to listen to his story until the end.

Marcus waited until the excited atmosphere of the citizens calmed down a bit, then continued his explanation.

“This might be a novel concept, but I have devised a system called bankruptcy and personal rehabilitation.”

Bankruptcy usually means losing all one’s assets and going broke, but it has a different meaning in legal terms.

It is a procedure where the debtor’s entire assets are distributed to the creditors when the debtor is completely unable to repay his or her debts.

Personal rehabilitation is a system where the debtor’s debts are reduced to an amount that he or she can repay when it is determined that the debtor cannot repay them at all.

Both of these policies require the creditors to accept some losses.

In bankruptcy, the creditors have no chance of recovering their principal, so they try to salvage whatever assets are left.

In this case, it is almost impossible to receive the full amount they were supposed to receive.

Personal rehabilitation is where the debtor’s debts are reduced to an amount that he or she can repay, which naturally leads to the creditor’s loss.

At first glance, it might seem like a system that forces unilateral sacrifice on the creditors, but Marcus emphasized that it was not.

“Logically, people who are in debt that they cannot possibly repay will give up on repaying them. Those who are desperate will commit suicide, and those who are not will flee.

Those who cannot repay their debts even if they sell all their assets are no different. This has created and is creating countless insolvents, and it will all lead to a decrease in Rome’s population. If the number of taxpayers continues to decrease, we will inevitably have to raise indirect taxes. Then, of course, tax resistance will intensify and in the long run, it will cause another decrease in population. A vicious cycle that we cannot escape from will be completed.”

“So you want us to break that cycle by sacrificing ourselves as creditors?”

“No. If you judge rationally, the losses incurred by bankruptcy and rehabilitation are already in an irrecoverable area. Rather, it is a way of making sure that we can recover some realistic amount of money by encouraging debtors not to give up on repaying them. In other words, it is a way of minimizing losses that are inevitable anyway.”

“Hmm… It does sound reasonable…”

Most of the senators and knights agreed with him, and even the plebeians who looked at him critically admired Marcus’s clear answer.

Marcus also preemptively addressed the possible side effects and blocked any objections.

“Of course, many of you might be worried about debtors who abuse this system. You should be. It is a system that can be burdensome for creditors, so we need to conduct thorough investigations and reviews. And we also need a law that punishes those who hide their assets and try to exploit this system with corresponding penalties.”

“Hm…”

“It does seem rational…”

The reaction of the citizens was obviously favorable, and even the conservative elders did not show any absolute opposition.

Marcus nailed it down with a confident tone.

“This is not a way of forcing one side to sacrifice for the sake of resolving conflicts. The debtors will regain their motivation by being freed from the swamp of excessive debt, and the creditors will be able to minimize their losses.

And the state will be able to maintain a stable base for collecting taxes. It is not a matter of who loses out, but rather a matter of everyone cooperating for Rome to move in a better direction.”

“That might work for the future, but what about the debts that have accumulated so far? Even if you recover them rationally through bankruptcy and rehabilitation, wouldn’t there be too many creditors who have to bear too much loss?”

Cato, who had been silent until now, asked a question. 

It was not an opposition for the sake of opposition, but a pure doubt.

Of course, there was also a contingency plan for that.

“That’s why we need to implement this system and push for reform now. There is no other opportunity to do it.”

“Why does it have to be now?”

“First of all, because of Catiline’s rebellion, there is a nationwide consensus. There is no policy that can satisfy everyone perfectly. But if there is a consensus that reform must be passed, it is easier to find common ground.”

“I agree with that. But it doesn’t seem to answer my question.”

“The second reason will be the answer. Next year, Rome will experience an unprecedented surplus budget. A huge amount of war reparations and taxes from the newly organized provinces will come from the east.

And because no one predicted that the budget would increase so much, there is no plan for how to use it yet.

So I suggest using some of this budget for financial reform. If the state compensates for some of the initial losses that creditors inevitably have to bear, wouldn’t it minimize dissatisfaction?”

Applause erupted from the areas where the knights were concentrated.

There was no reason for them to oppose if the state compensated for their losses.

Most of the senators also agreed that there was no problem as long as the budget was secured.

It was indeed the best time to reform, as there was social consensus and sufficient funds.

He thought he might never get another chance if he missed this time, so he naturally looked at Marcus’s proposal positively.

But Marcus’s real trick was yet to come.

What he said at first was nothing more than cleaning up the mess that had already happened.

He needed a fundamental solution to prevent this from happening again.

It was not enough to limit the interest rates.

‘Land reform is urgent, but it will never pass.’

The main culprit of the farmers’ downfall was the land monopoly of the nobles.

If they had made the landless farmers into tenant farmers, it would have been fine, but the nobles used large numbers of slaves to run latifundia.

The only way to solve this problem was to reform the land law and foster independent farmers.

But this was premature.

Land reform had become a symbol of opposing the senate since the Gracchi brothers.

Caesar would take care of it in the future anyway, so Marcus didn’t need to rush.

Therefore, Marcus decided to focus all his efforts on financial reform for now.

“I think most of the problems that are scattered now can be solved with this reform. But if structural system reform is not accompanied, people who apply for bankruptcy will continue to increase. We need to think about this part.”

“Are you advocating a more radical reform than now?”

“Yes. This is absolutely necessary and I am confident that I have prepared enough evidence to support it.”

He paused for a moment and gathered the attention of the public. Then he unfolded a scroll he received from Curio and dropped a bombshell.

<End of Chapter 64: Marcus’s Reform>