This paper examines ecclesiastical credit operations in Spain in modern times to demonstrate that it is anachronistic to judge Spain's financial performance by the underdevelopment of a modern and professional banking system. My analysis of the loan portfolios of the Teresian Carmel Order and of its governance as an organization reveals the thriving market for long-term loans called censos and the sophistication of the Spanish capital market. Spanish people could do without banks because the country boasted a highly developed system of credit provision through religious institutions.