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A merchant bank is historically a bank dealing in commercial loans and investment. In modern British usage, it is the same as an investment bank. Merchant banks were the first modern banks and evolved from medieval merchants who traded in commodities, particularly cloth merchants. Historically, merchant banks' purpose was to facilitate or ...
An accepting house was a primarily British institution which specialised in the acceptance and guarantee of bills of exchange thereby facilitating the lending of money. [1] They took on other functions as the use of bills declined, returning to their original wider function of merchant banking.
Two immigrant families, Rothschild and Baring, established merchant banking firms in London in the late 18th century and came to dominate world banking in the next century. Many merchant banks were also established outside London, especially in growing industrial and port cities such as Manchester, Birmingham, Newcastle and Liverpool. By 1784 ...
The history of banking began with the first prototype banks, that is, the merchants of the world, who gave grain loans to farmers and traders who carried goods between cities. This was around 2000 BCE in Assyria , India and Sumer .
A London office opened in 1873, closed in 1916 during World War I and then re-opened again in 1923. In 1939 certain banking business of London Merchant Bank Ltd. (established in 1873) was acquired followed by the current business of Goschens & Cunliffe (established in 1814) in 1941. [4]
Morgan, Grenfell & Co. was a leading London-based investment bank regarded as one of the oldest and once most influential British merchant banks. It had its origins in a merchant banking business commenced by George Peabody. Junius Spencer Morgan became a partner in 1854. After Peabody retired the business was styled J. S. Morgan & Co.
In 1809, Frederick Huth (1777–1864), a lutheran German-born British merchant, established the London merchant bank "Frederick Huth & Co". [2] Huth started speculating on his own account and acted as agent for other merchants. The business grew rapidly, specialising in trade with Germany, Spain and South America. Soon, Huth provided credits ...
The word bank was taken into Middle English from Middle French banque, from Old Italian banco, meaning "table", from Old High German banc, bank "bench, counter". Benches were used as makeshift desks or exchange counters during the Renaissance by Florentine bankers, who used to make their transactions atop desks covered by green tablecloths.