The Trade and Industry Bank was the first bank of the interwar Republic of Lithuania. It was established in 1918 and, by 1922, became the second largest bank in Lithuania, after Ūkio bankas. Due to mismanagement, it went bankrupt in 1927.
The bank was founded in summer 1918 though it was officially approved on 19 December 1918. It was a commercial bank, but it also performed some state treasury functions, including handling government's foreign payments and selling government bonds, while the state treasury was being set up. Until mid-1922, it was half owned by the Ministry of Finance when it sold majority of its shares to Martynas Yčas who became the controlling shareholder. A number of prominent Lithuanian figures, including politicians and artists, owned shares in the bank.
The bank expanded quickly and established 22 branches by 1922. It also invested in the Baltic States Bank in New York and the German–Lithuanian Bank in Berlin. Due to the high post-war inflation, the bank invested in "hard" assets, including land, real estate, and shares of various companies. It financed numerous companies connected to Yčas. Due to realized losses and illiquid assets that had depreciated in value, the bank started experiencing a liquidity crunch in 1923. By mid-1924, the bank was insolvent. After leadership change, the bank continued to function until about 1926. It was officially declared bankrupt in September 1927.
While the bank operated in difficult post-war economic conditions, it was mismanaged. Bank loans were issued hastily without proper guarantees, its assets were overvalued, loans to its officers were made at very favorable rates, money was used for personal purposes, there were accounting irregularities, etc. Eight leaders of the bank were tried for criminal negligence. The court rendered its decision in March 1936 finding Yčas and Jonas Šodė guilty, while others were acquitted. However, jail time was avoided due to the expired