Georg Coch

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Georg Coch memorial stone in Hesserode

Georg Coch (born February 11, 1842 in Hesserode , † January 8, 1890 in Constantinople ; also Johann George Theodor Coch ) was an economist and banker and founder of the Austrian Postal Savings Bank .

Life

Georg Coch grew up in Hesserode, a current district of Felsberg in Northern Hesse . When he was eight years old, his father died. The economically tense conditions at his parents' house only enabled him to receive further training in Geneva for a few months . He then completed a commercial apprenticeship at the wholesaler "Matthieu Frères & Cie" in Istanbul . Then he moved to Vienna .

Georg Coch Monument in Vienna, in the background the Wiener Postsparkasse

In 1880 he was commissioned by the Austrian Minister of Commerce to examine the foreign postal savings bank system for its feasibility in Austria . Coch first traveled to England to design a system that was able to link a central institute with external collection points. Coch analyzed the English operating procedures down to the last detail and planned their introduction in Austria. He put on an extensive collection of documents, which he published in his report Die Postsparcassen in England, Belgium , Holland and France with regard to Austria . His analyzes were a prerequisite for a successful introduction in Austria. On January 12, 1883, the kk Postsparcassen office was opened in Austria, thus establishing the Austrian postal savings bank system and postal checks. Georg Coch was entrusted with the management.

The success of the new Österreichische Postsparkasse was overwhelming. 200,000 accounts had already been set up within seven weeks. As a savings bank for the “little people”, the Postsparkasse was particularly promoted by the Christian Social Party , not least in connection with their anti-Semitic reservations about the major Viennese banks. This initially strengthened Coch's position in the economy, but also challenged numerous opponents. After only three years in office, Coch was relieved of his functions by the Austrian finance minister in 1886 because of a formal error in the ordinance on the organizational statute of the PSK that he had consciously accepted and dismissed from civil service by the emperor "in honor".

In 1888 he moved to Istanbul again. There he died of heart failure in 1890.

Honors

A memorial stone in his place of birth Hesserode reminds of him. In 1913, Georg-Coch-Platz in Vienna's Innere Stadt (1st district) was named after him, and there is also a memorial on it. The dominant building on the square is the Wiener Postsparkasse, built by Otto Wagner from 1904 to 1906 .

literature

Web links

Commons : Georg-Coch-Platz, Vienna  - Collection of images, videos and audio files
personal data
SURNAME Coch, Georg
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Coch, Johann George Theodor
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German-Austrian economist, founder of the Österreichische Postsparkasse
DATE OF BIRTH February 11, 1842
PLACE OF BIRTH Hesserode near Felsberg (Hesse)
DATE OF DEATH January 8, 1890
Place of death Istanbul