Bankhaus Veit L. Homburger
Bankhaus Veit L. Homburger was a Jewish-founded private bank in Karlsruhe that operated from 1854 until its liquidation during the Nazi era.
Last updated August 26, 2026
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Overview
Bankhaus Veit L. Homburger was a Karlsruhe banking house established in 1854 by Veit Löw Homburger, a member of one of the city’s longstanding Jewish families. It developed from the Homburger family’s earlier banking and exchange activities and became part of Karlsruhe’s commercial and architectural history. The institution was a privately owned bank rather than a modern mass-market financial brand, and its identity was closely tied to the Homburger family and to the city in which it operated. The bank’s founder, Veit Löw Homburger, was born in 1810 and died in 1878. In 1854 he separated from two brothers with whom he had been conducting the family’s banking and exchange business and established the institution that carried his name. Other members of the family also founded separate banking businesses, including Victor Veit Homburger and Paul Homburger. This pattern reflects the role of family-based banking houses in nineteenth- and early twentieth-century German commercial life, when financial firms frequently operated through personal capital, family relationships, and local business networks. At the end of the nineteenth century, the bank commissioned a substantial new building at Karlstraße 9–11, on the corner of Akademiestraße. Designed by the architects Curjel & Moser between 1899 and 1901, the building included architectural decoration by the sculptor Oskar Kiefer. The surviving structure is significant not only as a former banking premises but also as part of Karlsruhe’s protected architectural heritage. The building’s physical survival contrasts with the destruction of the bank as an independent Jewish-owned institution. The bank and the Homburger family were persecuted after the National Socialists came to power in 1933. Anti-Jewish boycotts targeted the business, while members of the Homburger family were interned or driven into exile. Under the Nazi regime’s racial legislation and coercive economic policies, the bank was Aryanized: ownership and control were transferred to non-Jewish owners. The institution was subsequently liquidated in 1939. These events place Bankhaus Veit L. Homburger within the broader history of the expropriation and destruction of Jewish businesses in Nazi Germany. From the 1940s onward, the former bank building was used by the Badische Kommunale Landesbank, also known as Bakola. After later mergers and changes of name, the banking successor became Baden-Württembergische Bank, or BW-Bank, which continued to use the building until 2010. The premises were later used for commercial purposes, including a Vapiano restaurant on the ground floor. The bank itself did not survive as an operating institution, but its name remains associated with the history of Karlsruhe’s Jewish community, the city’s financial development, and the architectural landmark at Karlstraße 11. There is no evidence in the supplied reference material of a current successor brand operating under the Bankhaus Veit L. Homburger name, a public listing, a standalone website, or contemporary banking activities. Its present historical significance therefore rests on its nineteenth-century role, the persecution and forced transfer of its business during the Nazi period, and the preservation of its former headquarters.
History
The Homburger family was among Karlsruhe’s oldest Jewish families. The family’s presence in the city traced back to an ancestor from Homburg am Main who was permitted to settle in Karlsruhe in 1722 and became known as Löw Homburger. This family background formed the social and commercial context for the later banking enterprise. Veit Löw Homburger, born in 1810, initially worked with two brothers in the family’s banking and exchange business. In 1854 he separated from them and founded Bankhaus Veit L. Homburger. The firm operated as a family-linked private bank in Karlsruhe. Other Homburger relatives later established their own banking institutions, including Victor Veit Homburger and Paul Homburger. Between 1899 and 1901, Curjel & Moser designed a new headquarters for the bank at Karlstraße 9–11, at the junction with Akademiestraße. Oskar Kiefer provided the sculptural architectural decoration. The building became an important element of Karlsruhe’s urban and architectural heritage. The writer Carl Einstein was apprenticed to the Homburger company around 1904, providing a documented connection between the bank and a notable figure in German literary and artistic history. The bank’s history changed fundamentally after the Nazi seizure of power in 1933. Anti-Jewish boycotts affected the business, and members of the Homburger family were interned or forced to leave Germany. Nazi racial policy resulted in the Aryanization of the bank, meaning that its ownership was transferred to non-Jewish owners through coercive measures. The institution was liquidated in 1939. The building survived the liquidation of the bank. From the 1940s, it was occupied by the Badische Kommunale Landesbank, commonly called Bakola. Following institutional mergers and renamings, the banking organization became Baden-Württembergische Bank, or BW-Bank. BW-Bank used the former Homburger premises until 2010. The ground floor was later occupied by a Vapiano restaurant. The surviving building thus represents both the former location of a Jewish Karlsruhe banking house and the later reuse of property taken over during the Nazi period.
- 2010
BW-Bank use of the building ends
[1]Baden-Württembergische Bank continued using the former bank building until 2010.
- 1940
Former premises transferred to later banking use
[1]From the 1940s, the preserved building was used by the Badische Kommunale Landesbank, later associated through mergers and renamings with Baden-Württembergische Bank.
- 1939
Bank liquidated
[1]The bank was Aryanized under Nazi racial policy and was liquidated in 1939.
- 1933
Persecution begins under Nazi rule
[1]The bank was subjected to anti-Jewish boycotts after the Nazis came to power, while Homburger family members faced persecution, internment, and forced exile.
- 1901
New headquarters completed
[1]The purpose-built banking premises at the corner of Karlstraße and Akademiestraße were completed after the 1899–1901 construction period.
- 1899
Construction of a new bank building begins
[1]Curjel & Moser began designing and building the bank’s new premises at Karlstraße 9–11, with architectural decoration by Oskar Kiefer.
- 1854
Bank founded by Veit Löw Homburger
[1]Veit Löw Homburger separated from his brothers’ banking and exchange business and founded Bankhaus Veit L. Homburger in Karlsruhe.
- 1722
Homburger family permitted to settle in Karlsruhe
[1]An ancestor of the later bank founder, Löw from Homburg am Main, was permitted to settle in Karlsruhe, establishing the family’s documented roots in the city.
Products and positioning
A nineteenth-century Karlsruhe private banking house serving local commercial and financial networks. Its historical identity was rooted in family ownership and Jewish civic and business life rather than in a modern consumer-facing product portfolio.
Private banking · 1854
Banking and exchange services
The available historical material describes Bankhaus Veit L. Homburger as a banking and exchange business. It does not provide a detailed catalogue of particular deposits, loans, securities, or other named financial products. The firm’s business appears to have been organized as a locally rooted, privately owned banking house serving commercial and financial relationships in Karlsruhe.
Controversies
1933
Nazi persecution and Aryanization
After 1933, the Jewish-owned bank was targeted by anti-Jewish boycotts and subjected to coercive Nazi measures. The Homburger family experienced internment and forced exile, and the bank was transferred to non-Jewish owners before being liquidated in 1939.
Brand decisions
1939
Liquidation under Nazi expropriation policyOtherBackground
The bank had first been subjected to anti-Jewish boycotts and Aryanization after the Nazi takeover of 1933.
Action taken
Bankhaus Veit L. Homburger was liquidated in 1939 after its Jewish ownership had been forcibly displaced.
Aftermath
The bank ceased to exist as an independent institution, while its former building remained standing and was later used by successor public and regional banking institutions.
Sources1 sources
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