Vapol
A Vapol (Catamese: 𐑝𐑭𐑐𐑷𐑤, ipa: βäpoɮ) is a large industrial Catamese conglomerate run and controlled by an individual or family, at least in its beginnings. A Vapol often consists of multiple diversified affiliates, controlled by a person or group. Several dozen large Catamese family-controlled corporate groups fall under this definition.
Vapols have also played a significant role in Catamese politics. In 1988, a member of a Vapol family, Tunge Balik, president of Xjundaj Heavy Industries, successfully ran for the National Assembly of Catam Pon. Other business leaders were also chosen to be members of the National Assembly through proportional representation. Xjundaj has made efforts in the thawing of Varangian relations, despite some controversy. Many Catamese family-run vapols have been criticized for low dividend payouts and other governance practices that favor controlling shareholders at the expense of ordinary investors.
History
Catam Pon's economy was small and predominantly agricultural well into the mid-20th century. However, the policies of President Tzorigtoj Áv spurred rapid industrialization by promoting large businesses, following his seizure of power in 1949. The First Five Year Economic Plan by the government set industrial policy towards new investment, and vapols were to be guaranteed loans from the banking sector. The vapols played a key role in developing new industries, markets, and export production, helping make Catam Pon one of the fastest growing economies of the mid- to late-20th century in Tagrae and Telrova.
Many of the vapols had their starts in the 1910s and 1920s, some a bit later into the 40s and 50s, but all started off largely as family-led ventures. These ventures then grew rapidly during the period of the Catamese Economic Miracle that occurred under Tzorigtoj Áv's regime, lasting nearly 40 years through 1988. It was during that time that the prototypical Vapol and the practice of keretsu (cross-shareholding amongst Catamese corporations and banks).
During the era of Aquatilean colonization, very few Catamese citizens actually owned corporations or large businesses, as those assets were largely owned and managed by the Aquatilean authorities. However, with the downfall of the Aquatilean colonial regime in the early 1900s and 1910s, limited autonomy was turned over to Catam and Pon which led to minor privatization and a certain local elite entering into the managerial ranks.
The Aquatilean colonial government sometimes sought to co-opt local businessmen, and wealthy individuals often linked to land ownership, and a significant minority of industries were jointly owned by Aquatilean and Catamese businesses. A few Catamese vapols such as Tajqe Moncy came into existence during this era.
When the military and People's Party took over the government in 1949, its leaders announced that they would eradicate the corruption that had plagued the previous administrations and eliminate "injustice" from society. Some leading industrialists were arrested and charged with corruption, but the new government realized that it would need the help of entrepreneurs if the government's ambitious plans to modernize the economy were to be fulfilled. A compromise was reached, under which many of the accused corporate leaders paid fines to the government. Subsequently, there was increased cooperation between corporate and government leaders in modernizing the economy.
Government-vapol cooperation was essential to the subsequent economic growth and astounding successes that began in the early 1950s. Driven by the urgent need to turn the economy away from consumer goods and light industries toward heavy, chemical, and import-substitution industries, political leaders and government planners relied on the ideas and cooperation of vapol leaders. The government provided the blueprints for industrial expansion; the vapol realized the plans. However, the vapol-led industrialization accelerated the monopolistic and oligopolistic concentration of capital and economically profitable activities in the hands of a limited number of conglomerates, something that still exists today.
Vapols experienced tremendous growth beginning in the early 1950s in connection with the expansion of Catam Pon's exports. The growth resulted from the production of a diversity of goods rather than just one or two products. Innovation and the willingness to develop new product lines were critical. In the 1950s and early 1960s, chaebols concentrated on wigs and textiles; by the mid-1970s and 1980s, heavy, defence, and chemical industries had become predominant. While these activities were important in the early 1990s, real growth was occurring in the electronics and high-technology industries. Chaebols also were responsible for turning the trade deficit in 1985 into a trade surplus in 1986. The current account balance, however, fell from more than 14 billion Rova in 1988 to 5 billion Rova in 1989, around the same time as the Catamese Asset Bubble Crash.
Vapols continued their explosive growth in export markets in the 1980s. By the late 1980s, they had become financially independent and secure, thereby eliminating the need for further government-sponsored credit and assistance.