Keyser Ullman
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1868 |
| Founder | Samuel Montagu Ellis Abraham Franklin |
Key people | Edward du Cann (Chairman, 1970-1975) |
Keyser Ullman was a British merchant bank.
History
A. Keyser & Co was an independent merchant bank founded by Samuel Montagu and his partners in 1868.[1]
Naomi Levine states that Keyser was founded by Ellis Abraham Franklin using Montagu's money.[2]
In The Rise of Merchant Banking, Stanley D. Chapman describes Keyser & Co as a "second eleven" for the overcrowded flanks of Montagus and Franklins.[3]
Sir Edward du Cann, a Member of Parliament (MP) and former chairman of the Conservative Party, was chairman of Keyser Ullman from 1970 to 1975. In October 1974, du Cann and the executive of the 1922 Committee met at du Cann's Keyser Ullman offices in Milk Street, where it was decided that the Committee would press Edward Heath to hold a leadership election, which led to Margaret Thatcher becoming party leader. The press called them the "Milk Street Mafia".
A Department of Trade and Industry report into the failure of Keyser Ullman found du Cann to have been "incompetent" while chairman between 1970 and 1975. "In 1973, the bank lent pounds 17m to a 28-year- old entrepreneur, Christopher Selmes, secured on a valueless guarantee. Mr Selmes later fled the country, leaving debts of more than pounds 20m."[4]
Property developer Jack Dellal sold his merchant bank, Dalton Barton to Keyser Ullman for £58m just before the 1973-74 banking crisis that caused Keyser's failure. Dellal was deputy chairman of Keyser and some have argued that he was "prime culprit" in the failure of Keyser Ullman and du Cann's resulting bankruptcy.[5]
References
- ^ "Swaythling; Samuel Montagu (1832-1911); Baron; merchant banker and philanthropist". UCL. Retrieved 4 November 2015.
- ^ Naomi Levine (1 September 1991). Politics, Religion, and Love: The Story of H.H. Asquith, Venetia Stanley, and Edwin Montagu, Based on the Life and Letters of Edwin Samuel Montagu. NYU Press. p. 54. ISBN 978-0-8147-5057-5. Retrieved 4 November 2015.
- ^ Stanley D. Chapman (3 November 2005). The Rise of Merchant Banking. Taylor & Francis. p. 48. ISBN 978-0-415-37863-5. Retrieved 4 November 2015.
- ^ Ward, Stephen (23 October 2011). "Du Cann will apply to have bankruptcy order lifted: Former chairman of Conservative Party faced petition for solicitors' bills". independent. Retrieved 4 November 2015.
- ^ Gribben, Roland (30 October 2012). "Property tycoon 'Black Jack' Dellal plays his last hand". telegraph. Retrieved 4 November 2015.