Figures in Finance:
NATHAN MAYER ROTHSCHILD

The world of finance is not something that was made within a day; it is a system intricately built upon years of history and influence coming from the great fiscal minds of the past as they weaved the webs of the system that we know today as the global economy. One of such figures is Nathan Mayer Rothschild, one of the richest men of his time. Aside from being one of the most affluent people during his lifetime, his influence also spans continents as he partook and benefited from notable historical events, namely the Napoleonic Wars.

 

Nathaniel Mayer Rothschid was born on 16 September, 1777 in Frankfurt, Germany to his father and mother, Mayer Amschel Rothschild and Guttle Schnapper Rothschild. Despite his future success, he initially lived within the ghettos of Frankfurt with his mother, father, and 9 siblings. Once he came of age, he moved to England, where he participated in the London Stock Exchange. There he sold and bought stocks and bonds; in 1805, upon success of doing so for a couple of years he established his own bank where he also traded foreign currency, British government securities/bills, securing himself a steady flow of profit. When he married Hannah Barent-Cohen in 1806, he expanded his influence and connections in the business world through access in the British ‘upper-class’, to the point he managed to also trade gold bullions aside from paper commodities. This was a major milestone for him as prior to marrying Hannah Barent-Cohen, he had relatively few connections due to his ‘low’ status being an immigrant and a Jew (Kuten, 2021). 

 

With his initial success, he managed to make a name for himself within the history books. For instance, during the Napoleonic Wars where the French General-- Napoleon Bonaparte-- fought the British in the Battle of Waterloo, Rothschild provided significant amount of funds toward the British Government to supply the commanding general of the British side in the battlefront-- the Duke of Wellington-- to supply him with gold coins to pay for the troops being used for the battle. Since the battle was won by the British, Rothschild obtained significant earnings as the British government thus owed him a sizable sum of money. Furthermore, such a feat highlighted the strength of Rothschild’s business empire and his network of connections (The Rothschild Archive, 2013). With more wealth, he also proceeded to diversify his sources of cash flows, branching out to other fields such as mining and textile.

 

According to Kuten (2021), it is expected that during his death in 1836, his net worth was the same size as 0.62% of the British national income at the time, which is equivalent to about 250 billion dollars in today’s money, taking inflation into account. That net worth still excluded the amount of money in the banks he established under his management! With this, Nathan Rothschild paved his own legacy for his family and the world; not only did he establish one of the most prominent and well-known banks in the world, he also made a name for his own family, securing his descendants wealth and prosperity with his inheritance and all the wealth he had accumulated during his lifetime. It is apparent that Nathan Rothschild was a successful figure, despite not having a lavish upbringing-- so what lessons can we learn from him?

 

First of all, it has to be understood that coming from a less affluent community/background doesn’t mean that success in pursuing our ambitions is out of reach. Having good connections/relationships with the right people is another key factor that could be taken into account, as it was this that helped Nathan Rothschild further expand his businesses, and open him up to many new opportunities. Lastly, once you have established a source of income, it is always important to expand and diversify to find other sources of income to minimize risk-- as after all, our world is changing at an ever faster pace than before. Taking all these lessons into account, with a little luck, who knows, you too could be the next Nathan Mayer Rothschild!

 

Having good connections/relationships with the right people is another key factor that could be taken into account, as it was this that helped Nathan Rothschild further expand his businesses, and open him up to many new opportunities.

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