Hauck & Aufhäuser
German private bank focused on wealth management, asset management, investment banking and services for institutional and corporate clients.
Last updated August 25, 2026
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Overview
Hauck & Aufhäuser is a German private-bank brand whose modern organization was created in 1998 through the merger of Frankfurt-based Georg Hauck & Sohn Bankiers and Munich-based Bankhaus H. Aufhäuser. The combined institution inherited two long-established private-banking traditions: the Hauck business traces its origins to a Frankfurt trading and banking partnership dating from 1796, while Bankhaus Aufhäuser was founded in Munich in 1870. The bank has historically concentrated on advisory and asset-management services for private clients, companies, institutional investors and independent asset managers rather than operating as a mass-market retail bank. The Hauck side of the institution developed from Gebhard & Hauck, a Frankfurt business involved in bills of exchange, commissions, forwarding and lending. The firm later became Georg Hauck & Sohn and participated in the establishment or development of companies in the Rhine-Main region, including Frankfurter Bank and Metallgesellschaft. The Aufhäuser side began as Aufhäuser & Scharlach, founded by Heinrich Aufhäuser and Samuel Scharlach in Munich. After Aufhäuser bought out Scharlach, the business became Bankhaus H. Aufhäuser and built a reputation in securities brokerage and private banking. Both predecessor institutions experienced the political and economic disruptions of the twentieth century, including hyperinflation, the Great Depression, the Second World War and the Nazi persecution of Jewish businesses and families. Following the 1998 merger, Hauck & Aufhäuser presented itself as a traditional but modern private bank. Its activities included wealth management, securities and investment advice, asset management, investment banking, fund services and cooperation with independent asset managers. The bank expanded its geographical footprint through offices and operating units in cities including Frankfurt, Munich, Hamburg, Düsseldorf, Cologne, London, Luxembourg, Nanjing and Shanghai. Its service portfolio also broadened through digital asset management and fund-platform operations. Ownership changed significantly in the 2010s. After a sale process announced in 2015, the Chinese investment group Fosun International acquired the bank in 2016 following regulatory approval from the European Central Bank and BaFin. In 2016 the bank also announced the acquisition of Sal. Oppenheim's fund-platform activities in Luxembourg. In 2018 it entered digital asset management with Zeedin. In 2021 it completed the acquisition of Bankhaus Lampe from the Oetker Group and adopted the name Hauck Aufhäuser Lampe, commonly abbreviated HAL. In 2024 ABN AMRO agreed to acquire Hauck Aufhäuser Lampe from Fosun International for €672 million. The transaction excluded certain businesses, including units involved in alternative-investment-fund management and fund administration. The acquisition was completed on July 1, 2025 according to the referenced account, placing the bank within ABN AMRO while leaving the Hauck and Aufhäuser heritage represented in the brand. The institution remains oriented toward private banking, asset management, investment advice, fund services and related services for professional and institutional clients.
History
The Hauck & Aufhäuser identity combines the histories of two German private banks. The older lineage is associated with Friedrich Michael Hauck, who joined the Frankfurt business Platz & Gebhard on January 1, 1796. The firm, renamed Gebhard & Hauck, conducted bills-of-exchange, commission, forwarding and lending business. In the nineteenth century Georg Heinrich and Ferdinand Hauck continued the family enterprise, later separating their activities. Georg Hauck established Georg Hauck & Sohn, while Ferdinand's bank was eventually liquidated and transferred to Georg Hauck & Sohn in 1926. Georg Hauck & Sohn participated in the creation and development of businesses in the Rhine-Main region and was involved in securities distribution, industrial finance and corporate investment. The firm operated through major political and economic upheavals. In 1888 it helped market shares in Farbwerke Hoechst, and it later held an investment position in Brown, Boveri & Cie. The bank survived the 1866 German War, the Franco-Prussian War, the 1873 financial crash, the November Revolution, post-World War I hyperinflation and the economic crisis of the late 1920s and early 1930s. During the Nazi period, Otto Hauck resigned from the Frankfurt Chamber of Commerce and Industry after being attacked because of his Jewish ancestry. His successor Alexander Hauck was classified under the Nuremberg Laws as a person of mixed Jewish ancestry. In 1938 Georg Hauck & Sohn acquired a majority stake in the banking business J. Ph. Keßler, partly as a means of securing the institution's future. The Frankfurt bank building was destroyed in air raids in March 1944 and rebuilt after the war. The last Hauck family member to serve as a personally liable partner, Michael Hauck, left the bank in 1993. The second lineage began in Munich on May 14, 1870, when Heinrich Aufhäuser and Samuel Scharlach founded Aufhäuser & Scharlach. Heinrich Aufhäuser later bought out Scharlach, and the institution was renamed Bankhaus H. Aufhäuser in 1894. It initially specialized in securities brokerage and grew rapidly, serving prominent private and institutional customers. In 1918 the Berlin bank Arnhold and S. Bleichroeder became a limited partner, and the two institutions developed cross-shareholdings. The bank's business expanded during the 1920s, although its Jewish ownership and connections made it vulnerable after the Nazi seizure of power. The Aufhäuser bank was subjected to boycotts, loss of customers and forced Aryanization. In December 1938 Friedrich Wilhelm Seiler took over the institution, which was renamed Seiler & Co.; Jewish employees were dismissed. Josef Bayer continued to manage much of the bank because of his knowledge of its operations, while shareholder Otto Schniewind was also connected to the institution. Members of the Aufhäuser family emigrated, and the family lost control. The institution resumed the name Bankhaus H. Aufhäuser in 1954. Descendants of the family were offered a stake retroactively to 1948, but the family sold its remaining shares in 1955 and ceased to participate in the bank. On January 1, 1998, Georg Hauck & Sohn and Bankhaus H. Aufhäuser merged to form Hauck & Aufhäuser KGaA. The resulting bank retained the private-bank model while expanding advisory, asset-management and institutional services. It operated in several German cities and internationally through locations and subsidiaries in London, Luxembourg and China. A sale to Fosun International was announced in 2015 and completed in 2016 after regulatory review. The transaction made Fosun the first Chinese majority shareholder of a German bank of this type, while the existing management initially remained in place. The bank acquired Sal. Oppenheim's Luxembourg fund-platform operations in 2016 and entered digital asset management with Zeedin in 2018. In 2020 it announced an agreement to acquire Bankhaus Lampe from the Oetker Group. Completion followed in October 2021, and the institution was renamed Hauck Aufhäuser Lampe. In May 2024 ABN AMRO agreed to buy HAL from Fosun for €672 million, with several specialist alternative-investment and fund-administration activities excluded from the transaction. The referenced account records completion on July 1, 2025. The bank consequently became part of ABN AMRO while continuing the Hauck and Aufhäuser private-banking tradition under the HAL identity.
- 2025
ABN AMRO acquisition completed
[1]The referenced account states that ABN AMRO completed the purchase on July 1, 2025.
- 2024
ABN AMRO agrees to purchase HAL
[1]ABN AMRO agreed to acquire Hauck Aufhäuser Lampe from Fosun International for €672 million, subject to the transaction's stated scope and conditions.
- 2021
Bankhaus Lampe integration completed
[1]Following completion of the Bankhaus Lampe acquisition, the bank adopted the Hauck Aufhäuser Lampe name.
- 2018
Zeedin digital asset management introduced
[1]The bank expanded into digital asset management through Zeedin.
- 2016
Fosun International acquisition completed
[1]Fosun International became the bank's majority shareholder after approval by European and German banking authorities.
- 1998
Hauck & Aufhäuser created
[1]Georg Hauck & Sohn and Bankhaus H. Aufhäuser merged to form Hauck & Aufhäuser KGaA.
- 1993
Last Hauck family partner leaves
[1]Michael Hauck, the final family member serving as a personally liable partner, left the bank.
- 1954
Bankhaus H. Aufhäuser name restored
[1]The Munich institution returned to the Bankhaus H. Aufhäuser name after the postwar period.
- 1938
Georg Hauck & Sohn acquires a majority in J. Ph. Keßler
[1]The Frankfurt bank acquired a majority of the older J. Ph. Keßler banking business during the Nazi period.
- 1918
S. Bleichroeder becomes a limited partner
[1]Arnhold and S. Bleichroeder of Berlin took a limited-partner position in Bankhaus H. Aufhäuser.
Products and positioning
Traditional German private banking combined with modern wealth management, asset management, investment advice and specialist fund services.
Private banking
Wealth management and private banking
The bank's core private-client activity covers investment advice, portfolio management and broader wealth-management support. Its positioning has historically emphasized personal advisory relationships and tailored solutions for affluent private clients rather than standardized retail banking.
Investment management
Asset management
Hauck & Aufhäuser provides asset-management services for private, corporate and institutional customers. The activity forms part of the bank's broader investment platform and is complemented by cooperation with independent asset managers.
Investment banking
Investment banking and advisory
The institution has supported corporate and institutional clients through investment advice, securities-related services and selected investment-banking activities. Its historical predecessor banks also participated in corporate finance and securities distribution.
Fund administration · 2016
Fund services and fund platforms
The Luxembourg operations provide specialist fund-platform, fund-administration and related services. The bank expanded this area through the acquisition of Sal. Oppenheim's Luxembourg fund-platform business, while some such units were excluded from the later ABN AMRO transaction.
Digital asset management · 2018
Zeedin
Zeedin is the bank's digital asset-management offering, introduced as Hauck & Aufhäuser expanded its traditional private-bank model into digitally delivered investment management.
Alternative investment services
Alternative investment fund services
The broader HAL organization has included services for alternative investment funds and their managers. The referenced ABN AMRO transaction specifically excluded some alternative-investment-fund-management and fund-administration units.
Brand decisions
2024
Agree sale of HAL to ABN AMROM&ABackground
Fosun International agreed to sell Hauck Aufhäuser Lampe as part of a change in ownership and strategic group affiliation.
Action taken
ABN AMRO agreed to acquire HAL for €672 million, with some alternative-investment and fund-administration businesses outside the transaction perimeter.
Aftermath
The referenced account records completion on July 1, 2025, making HAL part of ABN AMRO.
Agreed purchase price. €672 million (Agreement announced in May 2024)
2020
Announce planned acquisition of Bankhaus LampeM&ABackground
The transaction was intended to expand the bank's scale and private-bank platform through the acquisition of Bankhaus Lampe from the Oetker Group.
Action taken
Hauck & Aufhäuser announced its intention to purchase Bankhaus Lampe, subject to competition-authority approval.
Aftermath
The transaction closed in October 2021 and led to the Hauck Aufhäuser Lampe name.
2018
Launch Zeedin digital asset managementProduct launchBackground
Digital delivery created an opportunity to extend private-bank investment capabilities beyond traditional branch and adviser relationships.
Action taken
Hauck & Aufhäuser entered digital asset management with Zeedin.
Aftermath
Zeedin became part of the bank's digital investment-management offering.
2016
Accept Fosun International as majority shareholderM&ABackground
The bank had been independently operated by personally liable partners before the sale process.
Action taken
Following regulatory approval, Fosun International acquired the bank and became its majority shareholder.
Aftermath
The bank became part of a Chinese investment group, while its management initially remained unchanged.
2016
Acquire Sal. Oppenheim Luxembourg fund-platform activitiesM&ABackground
Hauck & Aufhäuser sought to broaden its specialist fund-services and Luxembourg platform business.
Action taken
The bank announced the takeover of Sal. Oppenheim's Luxembourg fund-platform business and related local entities.
Aftermath
The transaction strengthened the bank's presence in fund platforms and fund-related services.
1998
Merge Georg Hauck & Sohn with Bankhaus H. AufhäuserM&ABackground
Two established German private banks sought to combine their regional histories and capabilities.
Action taken
The Frankfurt and Munich institutions merged to form Hauck & Aufhäuser KGaA.
Aftermath
The merged bank operated under a unified brand while retaining a private-bank focus.
Recent events
Raisin and Hauck & Aufhäuser launch private banking partnership[2]
Reported:
Raisin and Hauck & Aufhäuser entered a partnership through which the bank’s private banking customers can access third-party deposit products offered through Raisin’s German deposits platform.
Sources2 sources
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