Alvaro Da Fonseca

Alvaro da Fonesca, also known as Jacob Jessurun Alvarez was a successful merchant who amassed a large fortune running a business in India.

Around 1670 Da Fonesca arrived with his family from Nevis in the West Indies to England where he soon emerged as a prosperous merchant. He was also active in synagogue affairs of the Jewish community. About 1682 he decided to leave for India. Together with two other Jewish merchants, Bartholomew Rodriguez and Domingo do Porto, he have got the official permission to settle in Fort St. George (Madras). In India he spent 17 years (1683-1700) serving the English East India Company and its commercial interests.

In 1690 Da Fonesca became an alderman of the Madras Corporation, representing the leader of the Jewish merchant community of Madras. In collaboration with other Jewish compatriots Da Fonesca built a vast commercial empire and opened the door of new markets in Asia for the English trade. He invested large sums in trade to China, Burma and Bengal dealing mainly in commodities such as diamonds and precious stones, textiles and timber. He often used his own ships for transport of commodities from Madras to Europe.

After he amassed a large fortune in India De Fonesca decided to return back to London in 1700. There he acted on behalf of Thomas Pitt, the Madras governor in the evaluation and sale of the famous Pitt diamond.