Perspectives over time
It is over 200 years since Mayer Amschel Rothschild, the great, great, great, great grandfather of our Executive Chairman, Alexandre de Rothschild, created the family's first partnership agreement. His success in business lay in his focus on his client's goals, forming long-term relationships with them and understanding their needs. He developed innovative methods of trading that added real value to his clients.
Mayer Amschel understood the importance of preserving his strong reputation in sustaining a successful family business across generations. The partnership agreement set out the principles for a family business that put trusted client relationships as its driving ambition and encouraged shared perspectives and a creative, collaborative approach across its members.
In the early 19th century each of Mayer Amschel's five sons established banking businesses in the principal European financial centres of the time: London, Paris, Frankfurt, Naples and Vienna.
The brothers worked in close collaboration and created the fastest and most secure courier network in Europe with which to exchange market information. Thus they could combine their insights from across Europe, becoming the best informed and most internationally effective banking group in the world.
The brothers and their descendants spread out across the world and diversified into many different sectors. They created a global network of agents and contacts, giving them access to the most up-to-date business and political information. This enabled them to take advantage of new and developing business opportunities around the world. They used this leading position to play a preeminent role in the development of the sovereign bond market, beginning in Europe and Russia, and expanding into the Middle East, Latin America, South Africa, Asia and Australia.
The Rothschilds' support for new industries and technologies would help shape the future of our world.
New global markets were approached eagerly and with confidence. With the insights gained through business experience, as well as consultation with experts, the Rothschild & Co group earned a strong reputation for identifying global opportunities, and our assessment of new ventures was seen as authoritative.
For example, our business was instrumental in the development of railway networks across Europe and in emerging economies, such as Brazil and India.
The business addressed the issue of judging the strength of mining ventures in the late nineteenth century by founding The Exploration Company, which used its unrivalled minerals intelligence to inspire trust and confidence in investors. Among its achievements was the prediction of gold booms in South Africa and Australia.
Our business in London was the spiritual home of privatisation, doing more to further the selling of state enterprises than any other company in the 1980s. The £5.6 billion flotation of British Gas made our business the predominant privatisation adviser worldwide.
Our business sought to encourage investment in the emergent technologies of the twentieth century. One example was our Asset Management division's creation of Biotechnology Investments in the 1980s. This was driven by the insight of former Chairman Victor, 3rd Lord Rothschild, a scientist by training, in response to the potential commercial opportunities following discoveries in DNA.
Our business today continues this heritage of bold perspectives across divisions: from the expansion of our Equity Advisory offering in Global Advisory, to the foundation and successful development of our Merchant Banking business.
A 200-year history of entrepreneurship means we are never satisfied with remaining within conventional wisdom. Today, we proactively seek innovative ways to provide thoughtful, principled and creative solutions to our clients through our combined distinct perspective.
For an in-depth look at the history of the Rothschild family and their businesses, visit the website of The Rothschild Archive Trust.
