The Coalescence of a Cluster of Corporate International Banks, 1855–75

Through reviewing the establishment of British international corporate banks during the mid-nineteenth century, the paper reveals the remarkable, disproportionate role played by a promotional group composed of members and associates of the London private bank Glyn, Mills. However, despite the banking and merchanting backgrounds of this group, the successful creation of these international banks involved the resolution of substantial difficulties, arising from competition for the necessary concessions, problems in composing suitable boards of directors, and both economic and political instability. This is shown through an examination in particular of the founding of the Imperial Ottoman Bank, the London & Brazilian Bank and the Anglo-Italian Bank. Lastly, an analysis of the subscribers to the banks' shares reveals that, more widely, they were largely backed financially by the banking and mercantile milieu of the metropolis, but also with a significant capital involvement of a European cosmopolitan bourgeoisie.