Goldsmith Banking: A History

In seventeenth-century England goldsmiths became what we would now recognise as bankers. Goldsmiths’ shops sold not only gold and silver plate but also instruments of credit, such as bonds and bills of exchange, and offered ‘safe’ places to lodge capital at interest.

In seventeenth-century England goldsmiths became what we would now recognise as bankers. Goldsmiths’ shops sold not only gold and silver plate but also instruments of credit, such as bonds and bills of exchange, and offered ‘safe’ places to lodge capital at interest. As well as offering financial services to private individuals, goldsmith bankers also became trusted financial agents to the Crown. Whilst some goldsmith banks still survive today, and the likes of Coutts are still associated with the Crown, the link between goldsmiths and banking is largely forgotten in modern Britain. This book explores the history of goldsmith banking from its early seventeenth-century origins, through its maturity in the Restoration, the collapse of significant goldsmith banks following the 1672 Stop on the Exchequer, and the continuation of goldsmith banking through the ‘financial revolution’, formation of the Bank of England, and beyond. It combines a general narrative with examples of specific goldsmith banks throughout the period to examine goldsmith bankers’ practices, the instruments they dealt in and popularised, and the innovations in finance they instituted. This concise introduction to goldsmith banking is ideal for students, academics, and those with a general interest in financial history or early modern London.