Top 7 Earliest Banks in The World

The banking system has been a part of our lives since the early time of civilization and we simply cannot live without it. However, things were a bit different a long time ago when people used the barter system where you trade your stuff with other things you want.

The start of this barter system was also the point of establishment of the earliest bank in the world. The prototype of these modern banks also originated in the middle of the Renaissance age. On top of that, the most popular bank in history was also established known as the Medici Bank.

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From the list below you will see some of the earliest banks existing that still remain operational until this date. Some of the banks on this list that existed were established at the same time as the popular Medici Bank which eventually closes in 1494.

7. Coutts

Coutts is an English bank that has existed since the 17th century. The bank which started out as a gold shop was formed by in 1692 John Campbell, who happened to be a youngster from Scotland.

After Campbell passed away in 1712, he handed over his business to his family in 1755, and his grandchild Polly happened to get married to a businessman and a banking officer named James Coutts.

Ever since the death of Polly, as well as his father in 1760, the bank as well as a portion of their wealth, was passed to James who later on named the bank after himself. Since 2000, Coutts has owned the Royal Bank of Scotland(RBS). In an effort to focus more on the UK, RBS has sold Coutts International to the Bancaire Privée Union for an amount that has not been known.

6. Barclays

Barclays is one of the biggest multinational banks in the world and the sixth oldest bank in the world. This bank started out selling gold when it was set up by John Freame and Thomas Gould in 1690. In the year 1736, James Barclay, who is the son-in-law of John Freame became a partner in the business until a lot of people refer the business as "Barclays".

In the early 1900s, Barclays started to expand its business by taking over small English banks, and have kept on going until today. Due to the large size of its company and several branches across the world, Barclays was involved in some money scandals in which one of the accusations was money laundering and tax evasion in 2009.

It has been said that the situation manipulated the electric market in the US as well as the gold market in 2008.

5. Bankhaus Metzler

Bankhaus Metzler started its business in textiles and the bank was founded by Benjamin Metzler in 1674. Metzler who was from Saxony moved to Frankfurt in 1671 and worked as an accountant for many well-known textile companies before starting his very own business.

Around 1760, the company then changed to becoming a bank and Friedrich Metzler was the first officer in the family. At the end of the 19th century, this bank has focuses more on providing its monetary service for each individual needs.

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Today, Meltzer has provided financial services as merchant banks, business in securities, asset management, and even financial corporate negotiator.

4. C. Hoare & Co

C. Hoare & Co is a small and oldest private bank situated in the United Kingdom. It was established in 1672 by Sir Richard Hoare and it is still owned by his family until the 10th and 11th generations still operating that bank.

This particular bank provides high-quality services to its customers and has given them loans, savings accounts, broken promises as well as federal and estate taxes planning. In the 18th century, this bank has started to introduce modern banking especially written checks.

As the oldest bank in England and one of the most prestigious out there, C. Hoare & Co has many clients which include Lord Byron, Jane Austen, Eton College, and Catherine of Braganza who happened to be the wife of King Charles II.

3. Sveriges Riksbank

Sveriges Riksbank or some might called it Riksbanken is the central bank of Sweden and the third oldest bank that still remains operational to this date. This bank is also the oldest central bank in the world which the bank was first established back in 1668 under the rule of the Riksdag of Estates (the highest power of authority in Sweden at the time)

This was done to prevent the intervention of the king in bank affairs. Before this, the Bank of Sweden which was Stockholms Banco was considered a failure since the king was spending too much money without a proper guarantee. In the year 1866, the bank was then renamed Sveriges Riksbank after the new national law was introduced.

Following the global economic crisis in the early 2000s, this bank closed all its branches in Sweden and hired a new private company for the production of bills and coins.

2. Berenberg Bank (Joh. Berenberg, Gossler & Co. KG)

Berenberg Bank or officially known as Joh. Berenberg Gossler & Co. KG is one of the oldest private trade banks in the world and it is still operational since it was first established back in 1590 by the Berenberg/ Gossler family.

This is one of the banks which remains the same without a change in its identity and is still owned by the same family. The bank which has its headquarters in Hamburg, Germany has around 13 domestic as well as international branches as of now.

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The name of the bank was given in conjunction with the name Johann Berenberg and his son-in-law Johann Hinrich Gossler. Before they established the bank, the people of Berenberg used to be in the business of textiles and clothes. The logo which has never been changed represents the unity between the Berenberg family(bear) and the Gossler family(goose leg).

1. Banca Mote dei Paschi di Siena

The name of the bank, Banca Monte Dei Paschi di Siena which is also known as BMPS is the oldest bank of existence in the world that still remains operational today. The bank which was first set up in 1472 was under the rule of Magistrature Republik Siena.

Between the 17th and 18th centuries, after Italy was united, BMPS expanded its operation to the whole country and offered the first mortgage loans to the people of Italy.

To this date, BMPS still remains the 4th biggest commercial merchant bank in Italy. Lately, BMPS has been saved by the authority to avoid being closed down. It has been quite the long run for this particular bank.

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