Abraham Goldsmid

Abraham Goldsmid was an English financier and philanthropist born in Holland in 1756.

In 1765 as a young boy Abraham settled with his family in England. He started his business career in partnership with his brother, Benjamin Goldsmid, and they acted as bill-brokers. Soon the brothers were able to rise from obscurity and to become the successful and renowned bidders of the national loan during the Napoleonic Wars. Since they proved to be skillful in negotiating several public loans, they acquired considerable fortune.

After his brother died in 1808, Abraham continued to run the family business. In 1810 the house of Baring & Goldsmid contracted for the government loan of £14,000,000. Around that time, his business partner died, and Goldsmid was forced to find a solution alone, facing in the same time a powerful organization which was formed against the loan.

The price of scrip declined with each passing day, negatively reflecting the fortune of the house of the Goldsmid. Since the East India Company had some business dealing with him, more specifically, it gave him for sale bills of exchange worth of half a million, it claimed the price of its property from him.

The payment was arranged for Sept. 28, 1810. Goldsmid who was unprepared committed the suicide. He was renowned for his public and private generosity, and played an important role in funding, and managing the Royal Naval Asylum.