The Banque de Belgique (lit. 'Bank of Belgium') was a major bank in Belgium, founded in 1835 and eventually wound up in 1885 after experiencing multiple episodes of financial distress.
Overview
The Banque de Belgique was founded by liberal leader Charles de Brouckère on 1835/02/26. The aim was to partly offset the financial dominance in the country of the Société Générale de Belgique which was viewed as not providing savings services to the broader Belgian population,[1] and was also perceived as too much controlled by Dutch interests.[2] Adolphe Oppenheim was among the new bank's founding shareholders, alongside the French Banque Rothschild.[3] De Brouckère presented the new bank as a philanthropic endeavor, in line with the savings banks movement. The two banks were in direct competition in some segments of their activity, including note issuance which was not yet a monopoly.[4]