Moneylenders

The Chettys have a distinct ethnic identity ; they are sometimes associated with Tamils, of South Indian origin, with dark skin, but they also have a Southeast Asian and Indian appearance.

In terms of religion, they are Hindus with a devotion to Ganesha and Shiva, but they also follow Taoist and Islamic influences in their religious rituals.

They observe Deepavali, Pongal, the Hindu New Year, Navratri, and other traditional Hindu festivals.

Chinese cultural influence is also evident, in the case of ancestor worship and the religious objects used to perform rituals.

The Chettys speak a Malay dialect, which is mixed with many words borrowed from Tamil.

In Indochina, moneylenders of Hindu origin were called Chettys or Chettiars.

Money Lenders - Usurers

Whatever is said about their methods and the interest rates charged (which are no more excessive than those of Chinese lenders), their activities do not violate the Colony’s economic regulations.

The Chettiars are vested with the power to pursue their debtors in court and to seize their property. Moreover : ’Some financial experts and senior lawyers agree in recognizing in the Chettiars an innate sense of banking affairs and a fairly deep knowledge of civil procedure through routine.

This "officialized" usury system reflects the chronic inability of Public Authorities to meet the need for personal credit.

Faced with a daily life necessity (marriage, religious festival, tax payment, seed purchase, etc.), the borrower turns to a Chinese, Vietnamese, or Indian moneylender to obtain the needed sum with minimal guarantees and formalities ; in return, the price for this convenience and the associated risks is usury. For the colonial administration, it is "at worst a regrettable but inevitable evil."

The Chettys - An Economic Power

The term "chettiar" or "chetty" is present in the name of a whole series of castes in South India (in the Telugu and Tamil regions), whose main activity revolves around trade and money commerce. Among these different castes, there is one whose economic dynamism extended beyond regional borders from the mid-19th century to the mid-20th century : the Nattukottai Chettiar.

Starting from their region of origin, located south of Madras and commonly called "Chettinad," they gradually expanded their economic networks alongside the colonial expansion, mainly British, across the Indian Ocean (South Africa, Mauritius, Ceylon, Burma, Malaysia). To the point where they emerged as a significant Asian player in the colonial capitalist economy.

Witness to this economic rise, Dr. Jean-Louis Lanessan, future Governor-General of Indochina (1891-1894), wrote in 1889 : "Lenders on all kinds of pledges or simple promissory notes, always ready to exploit the losses in gambling of the colonists, civil servants, and officers, as well as the financial needs of small traders, the Chetties have become the real masters of Saigon. The majority of building plots and almost all buildings belong to them."