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Miller, Edward S. “Japan’s Other Victory: Overseas Financing of the War.”…

- - - - Meiji leaders led the effort in reforms in taxation and economic output, while having exercising cautious fasical disipline and stabilizing the yen, which helped the Japanese get a better credit rating led by Matsukata
        
        the war reparations paid by the Qing China in 1895 let Japan pay off some of its old debts, and allowed for the transition to the gold standard
        
        the indemnity also allowed the funding of Japan's modern navy, which would be crucial for Japanese Imperial ambitions in the years that followed
- - - - The Russo-Japanese war accrued costs that were far above Japan's domestic revenue and what was left over in its gold reserves from the Sino-Japanese war
        
        As the Russo-Japanese war was waged, supply chains became increasingly strained, as Japan relied on imports of war material like ammunitions and naval supplies, which had to be imported from overseas and paid in foreign currency
        
        To pay for these expenses, the government levied taxes, but also issued state bonds and took on foreign debt to finance its campaign
        
        since Japan had no prior experience in financing wars at this scale, Viscount Takahashi Korekiyo, vice-governor of the Bank of Japan (and a future minister of finance and prime minister) was sent as a commissioner to the London stock exchange to raise $50 million overseas, but still encountered difficulty in raising the funds, as the markets were unsure of Japan's creditwhortiness and ability to win the war
        
        However, while in London he met with an influential Jewish banker from New York, Jakob H. Schiff, who was collaborative with the Japanese, especially as he held a grudge against the Russian Tsardom's treatment of Jews
        
        Schiff came through and delivered on his promise of raising at least 25 million USD worth of financing in New York, which led to a boom in which Meiji Japan managed to raise around 350 million USD, managing to finance half the cost of the war in 1904 alone
        
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        even the possibility of state bancruptcy was a real possibility at this point