Though still in its infancy, but making great progress, the acceptance has yet to overcome great difficulties. An important factor to be considered restricting its use is found in legislative restrictions which retard many of our banks from fully utilizing their acceptance powers. The very nature of the acceptance, that it must not be used to finance permanent investments not pure speculations, nor for the purpose of furnishing working capital, or so-called accommodations, enables a proper distribution of credit risks. By all means, the acceptance should be restricted from being used for speculative enterprises.

It is the unfamiliarity of the majority of banks, particularly the small ones scattered throughout the country, with the trade and bank acceptance and their practical usefulness, that is the real cause retarding their development. American methods of doing business under the open account and single name paper method, stand ten to one against the acceptance to-day, and must be overcome before the latter may be firmly established in this country. For this reason, it is necessary that acceptances, when used, should be used for the specific purposes out of which they are created, that is, in liquidation of current and existing transactions only.

Moreover, during the war, the development and use of the acceptance was confronted with great difficulties, arising out of governmental finance. Even to-day, the trade and bank acceptance is governed by the prices and interest yields of governmental securities. Whether they be in the form of liberty bonds or in treasury certificates, the government securities yield a standard of interest below which acceptances cannot go far without becoming unattractive for investing banks. It is hoped that in the near future, when the government regains its credit standing which it enjoyed before the war, and, when the value of government securities will undoubtedly be enhanced, the acceptance will be looked to more and more by all investing classes as ideal for the employment of funds.