Jacquier and Securius Bank
Corporate brand
UnclaimedJacquier and Securius Bank was a Berlin private bank founded in 1817 that evolved from serving smaller businesses into industrial finance before being forcibly Aryanized under Nazi rule and closed after the Second World War.
Last updated October 14, 2026
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Overview
Jacquier and Securius Bank was a German private banking house established in Berlin on August 11, 1817, by Friedrich Wilhelm Jacquier and John August Securius. The founders had previously worked together at the Huguenot banking firm L. Guillemot and F. W. Jacquier, where they held senior operational roles. The new bank initially concentrated on the financial needs of small and medium-sized enterprises. Client funds were commonly placed in fixed-income securities, reflecting the conservative orientation expected of a nineteenth-century private bank. By the late nineteenth century, the firm had broadened its activities. It invested in industrial enterprises and developed an umbrella relationship with associated financial businesses, including the Berlin Commercial and Exchange Bank. The liquidation of that subsidiary in 1878 brought Hermann Frenkel and other employees into Jacquier and Securius. Frenkel rose rapidly and became the dominant figure in the bank by the early twentieth century. In 1902 he bought out the remaining interests of the original partners with an investment of approximately 900,000 German gold marks. He subsequently admitted Albert Pinkuss and Eugene Panofsky as junior partners. The firm consequently became a partnership whose influence and ownership were concentrated among several interconnected Jewish banking families. The bank participated in larger industrial and infrastructure transactions during the late Imperial and Weimar periods. Friedrich Minoux joined as a partner in 1923 after investing one million German gold marks, reportedly equivalent to about one quarter of the bank's capital at the time. During his association with the firm, the bank was involved in a major canal project in Constantinople and in a consortium that acquired a controlling interest in cigarette manufacturer August Batscharis. Minoux sold his interest in 1931, although he retained offices at the bank's headquarters for a period. Family succession shaped the business during the early twentieth century. Hermann Frenkel's son Arthur entered the partnership in 1918, while Erich Frenkel, Max Landesmann, and members of the Panofsky family also became associated with the firm. Alfred Panofsky later succeeded his father Eugene, and Arthur Frenkel transferred his profit share to Erich in 1925 after several years of limited success. The Nazi seizure of power in 1933 transformed the bank's prospects. Government pressure forced the admission of non-Jewish partners, including Gerhard Ueltzen and later Robert Kraus, while Jewish partners and managers were marginalized or pushed out. Max Landesmann was required to leave, and Alfred Panofsky was temporarily prevented from exercising management authority. The remaining Jewish bankers attempted to sell or liquidate the business, but the process culminated in a forced transfer rather than a voluntary commercial exit. On March 1, 1938, Richard Lenz and Robert Kraus assumed the bank's receivables and liabilities and took control of its name and business. The former Jewish banking house was placed under the name Alfred Panofsky and Co. in Liquidation, while the operating business continued under the Jacquier and Securius identity. Deutsche Bank supplied one million Reichsmark through a silent investment, and Lenz contributed a further 500,000 Reichsmark. Under the new ownership, the bank acquired several other small Jewish banks, although the deterioration of Jewish clients' economic position under Nazi persecution severely weakened the resulting business. By 1938, approximately one third of the bank's original equity had been lost. The record also indicates that at least five Jewish employees continued working for the institution after the takeover. One employee remained concealed under an assumed identity until 1943. Such conduct exposed the new owners to serious danger in the Nazi political environment, even though it did not reverse the wider process of expropriation and exclusion. The bank ceased operations in 1945 after the German state had taken its assets and its buildings had been sold. Deutsche Bank was repaid through the release of equity capital. Postwar disputes between the heirs of the former Jewish partners and the heirs of Richard Lenz continued for decades. In 1964, Lenz's heirs agreed to pay 35,000 Deutsche Mark to several affected families. Later claims also concerned payments made during the Nazi period, real estate formerly belonging to the banking families, and artworks reportedly held at the Red Castle. Jacquier and Securius Bank therefore survives primarily as a case study in the history of German private banking, Nazi Aryanization, financial expropriation, and postwar restitution.
History
Jacquier and Securius Bank was founded in Berlin in 1817 by Friedrich Wilhelm Jacquier and John August Securius, former colleagues at a Huguenot banking firm. Its early business centered on small and medium-sized enterprises and the placement of client funds in fixed-income securities. During the nineteenth century, it developed beyond conservative deposit and investment services, taking positions in industrial companies and building a wider financial network. The bank's most important expansion phase followed the arrival of Hermann Frenkel. After the associated Berlin Commercial and Exchange Bank was liquidated in 1878, Frenkel joined Jacquier and Securius and advanced to partnership. By 1902, he had bought out the other principal interests and become the bank's leading figure. Albert Pinkuss and Eugene Panofsky joined him as junior partners, while later generations of the Frenkel and Panofsky families entered the partnership. This created a highly interconnected private banking enterprise in which family succession, political relationships, and commercial expertise all influenced governance. The firm participated in larger transactions during the early twentieth century. Friedrich Minoux became a partner in 1923 after making a substantial capital contribution. His association brought the bank into infrastructure financing connected with Constantinople and into a consortium that acquired a majority interest in cigarette manufacturer August Batscharis. Minoux disposed of his stake in 1931, but remained connected to the headquarters for a time. The Nazi takeover of Germany in 1933 initiated the bank's forced transformation. The policy of Gleichschaltung and the persecution of Jewish citizens made the continued operation of a Jewish-owned private bank increasingly untenable. Authorities required the admission of non-Jewish partners, including Gerhard Ueltzen and Robert Kraus. Jewish interests were removed from ownership and management: Max Landesmann was expelled, while Alfred Panofsky was temporarily barred from managerial authority. The remaining partners sought to sell or liquidate the firm, but ultimately faced a coerced transfer. In March 1938, Richard Lenz and Robert Kraus assumed the bank's receivables and liabilities and took control of the Jacquier and Securius name. The former institution was formally associated with Alfred Panofsky and Co. in Liquidation. Deutsche Bank provided one million Reichsmark through a silent investment, and Lenz contributed another 500,000 Reichsmark. The new owners expanded by absorbing several smaller Jewish banks, but these acquisitions offered little protection against the collapse of Jewish clients' economic circumstances under Nazi rule. Around one third of the original equity had disappeared by 1938. The history is complicated by evidence that several Jewish employees remained at the bank after Aryanization. At least five are reported to have worked there from 1938 onward, and one person was concealed until 1943. This exposed Lenz and Kraus to political and legal risk, although the bank remained part of the broader system in which Jewish property and businesses were expropriated. The institution ended in 1945. Its assets were taken by the state, its buildings were sold, and Deutsche Bank was repaid by releasing equity capital. The bank's legacy continued through restitution and compensation disputes. Legal proceedings involving the heirs of Lenz and the heirs of the Jewish banking families began soon after the war. A 1964 settlement required Lenz's heirs to pay 35,000 Deutsche Mark. Later disputes concerned a 1941 payment, private property belonging to the former banking families, and artworks reportedly held at the Red Castle. The bank is therefore remembered less as a continuing financial brand than as an extensively documented example of Berlin private banking and the financial consequences of Nazi persecution.
- 1964
Compensation settlement
[1]The heirs of Richard Lenz agreed to compensate families connected with the former Jewish banking interests.
- 1945
Operations end
[1]The bank was closed after state seizure of assets and the sale of its premises.
- 1938
Aryanization and transfer to Lenz and Kraus
[1]Richard Lenz and Robert Kraus assumed the bank's accounts and name in a coerced transfer, while the former house entered liquidation under another name.
- 1933
Political pressure begins the ownership transformation
[1]Nazi authorities imposed non-Jewish partners and restricted the roles of Jewish partners and managers.
- 1923
Minoux joins as an investor-partner
[1]Friedrich Minoux invested in the bank and connected it with infrastructure and industrial consortium activity.
- 1902
Frenkel becomes the dominant partner
[1]Frenkel bought out the other principal partners and consolidated control of the banking house.
- 1878
Hermann Frenkel joins the firm
[1]The liquidation of the Berlin Commercial and Exchange Bank brought Frenkel and other employees into Jacquier and Securius.
- 1817
Bank founded in Berlin
[1]Friedrich Wilhelm Jacquier and John August Securius established the private bank on August 11.
Products and positioning
A traditional Berlin private bank that began with conservative commercial and fixed-income services, later expanded into industrial finance, and became associated with politically exposed ownership changes during the Nazi period.
Banking · 1817
Private banking
The bank's core business was private banking for commercial clients in Berlin. Its original customer base consisted primarily of small and medium-sized businesses, with the firm investing client money in fixed-income securities and later broadening its activities as its capital and partner network grew.
Corporate finance
Industrial and corporate finance
By the turn of the twentieth century, Jacquier and Securius had moved beyond conservative securities investment into industrial ownership and corporate finance. The bank participated in consortia and helped finance or acquire stakes in industrial and commercial enterprises.
Investment banking · 1923
Infrastructure and securities consortium finance
During the Weimar period, the bank was involved in a proposed canal project connected with Constantinople and in a consortium that obtained majority stock in cigarette manufacturer August Batscharis. These activities reflected the firm's expansion into larger investment transactions.
Controversies
1964
Postwar compensation claims
Heirs of former Jewish bankers pursued claims against the heirs of Richard Lenz. A settlement was eventually reached, while other property and artwork claims remained subjects of historical and legal interest.
1945
State seizure and closure
The bank ceased operations after its assets were taken by the state and its buildings were sold at the end of the war.
1938
Forced Aryanization of Jacquier and Securius
Richard Lenz and Robert Kraus acquired the bank's accounts and business under conditions shaped by Nazi anti-Jewish policy. The transfer formed part of the broader expropriation of Jewish-owned enterprises in Germany.
1933
Political coercion and exclusion of Jewish partners
After the Nazi seizure of power, government policy forced the admission of non-Jewish partners and restricted or removed Jewish owners, partners, and managers from the bank.
Brand decisions
1938
Transfer of the banking house under AryanizationStrategyBackground
The Nazi regime's anti-Jewish policies made continued Jewish ownership and management increasingly impossible. Efforts to sell or liquidate the bank led to a coerced transfer to Richard Lenz and Robert Kraus.
Action taken
Lenz and Kraus took over the bank's receivables and liabilities and continued operating under the Jacquier and Securius name, while the former house was placed under the liquidation name Alfred Panofsky and Co.
Aftermath
The reorganized business acquired several smaller Jewish banks but suffered further deterioration as Jewish clients were impoverished and excluded. The institution ultimately closed in 1945.
Transfer accounts receivable and payable; financing provided after takeover. 3,600,000 Reichsmark in accounts receivable and payable; 1,000,000 Reichsmark Deutsche Bank silent investment; 500,000 Reichsmark contribution by Richard Lenz (March 1, 1938 and the subsequent recapitalization period)
1923
Expansion into infrastructure and industrial consortiumsStrategyBackground
The bank sought larger transactions beyond its traditional private-banking base and accepted Friedrich Minoux as a partner and investor.
Action taken
Jacquier and Securius participated in a canal project associated with Constantinople and in a consortium that acquired a majority interest in August Batscharis.
Aftermath
Minoux sold his stake in 1931, although the bank's broader industrial-investment orientation continued into the late Weimar period.
Capital contribution by Friedrich Minoux. 1,000,000 German gold marks, described as approximately one quarter of the bank's capital (1923)
Sources1 sources
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