Kathrein private bank

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  Kathrein Privatbank Aktiengesellschaft
Kathrein private bank
Country AustriaAustria Austria
Seat Vienna
legal form Corporation
Bank code 19150
BIC KTBKATWWXXX
founding 1924
Website www.kathrein.at
Business data 2012
Total assets approx. EUR 500 million
management
Board Wilhelm Celeda (Chairman)
Harald P. Holzer
Stefan Neubauer
Supervisory board Walter Rothensteiner (Chairman)

The Kathrein Privatbank Aktiengesellschaft is an Austrian bank based in Vienna and the beginning of 1924 under the name "Bank Limited Partnership Kathrein & Co" by Karl Kathrein was founded. As a small, insignificant bank with a manageable volume of business, it was never of great interest to large investors or customers, but also to the (business) media of the time, which is why there are hardly any documents about the history of the bank. In 1926 the bank's license was extended and the company name was changed to "Kathrein & Co Bank and Commission Business". Karl Kathrein managed the bank's fortunes as a managing partner with changing limited partners until the war, but died after a long illness in the summer of 1943 at the age of 72.

It has only had its current name since September 7, 2011. The main business areas of the private bank are asset management for entrepreneurial families and the establishment and support of private foundations. In 1977 the Raiffeisen Group became the majority owner; Since 1987 she has been the 100 percent owner of Kathrein Privatbank. It is therefore considered a subsidiary of Raiffeisen Bank International . The annual report of Raiffeisen Zentralbank Österreich shows that the assets to be managed by the private bank amounted to 5,044 million euros in 2012, the balance sheet total was 500 million euros and the annual profit was four million euros.

The private banking sector before 1938

Bankhaus Kathrein, like almost every larger bank that existed in Austria before 1938, has its own commission of historians, which examines the history of the private bank during the National Socialist era. However, little information from this analysis is publicly available.

By 1913 there should have been around 150 private banks and 27 joint stock banks in Vienna . In the course of the collapse of the monarchy , the number of banks continued to rise due to inflationary transactions and expectations of the financial crisis. Until 1924 the banking industry was regarded as a "free trade" so to speak, which means that everyone was authorized to practice banking. Due to many grievances, the license requirement was introduced in 1924. A concession authority responsible for this was not only given the power to issue concessions , but also to shut them down retrospectively. This resulted in the closure of 37 public banks and 136 private banks. Bankhaus Kathrein was able to survive this crisis.

The years 1919 and 1921 were considered to be the founding years of the banking sector due to inflation, but many years of crisis followed after the collapse of the monarchy. So it happened that many of these banks did not survive and had to close again quickly. In the years between 1924 and 1938, the Viennese financial center developed into a sharply declining arena for banks that found it difficult to calm down. When the Kathrein Privatbank was founded in 1923, it also had to go through the years of crisis, but was able to survive this period.

Development of the private banking sector in the years 1938–1945

State interventions in the private banking sector existed before 1938, but in the years between 1938 and 1945 these took place primarily under a racial ideological aspect. The aim was to exempt all leading positions from Jews. This was done through immediate leave of absence, dismissals and layoffs, or Jewish people were allowed to do some of their work, but they were not allowed to make it public.

Until 1938 there were hardly any German holdings in Austrian banks: only five companies and two banks had significant German capital, so the majority of the shares were in German ownership. But that changed rapidly in 1938. Those banks that had no German participation up to 1938 were nevertheless considered to be “German property” from that point on. As a result, Bayerische Vereinsbank acquired a 27.8% stake in the Kathrein bank before the end of the war.

Furthermore, on March 17, 1938, the then small private bank Kathrein & Co became liquidator of the nearby banking house "Reitler & Co.". This was the result of the fact that the Reitler & Co. bank at that time made the decision to quietly liquidate the bank. Up until then, the Kathrein Bank's clientele had been modest and not long before March 1938 it even seemed to be on the brink of "end".

The private banking sector after 1945

After the end of the war it was clear that the entire economic system, but above all the banking sector, had to undergo reform. But since the aim was not to restore the status of the banks that had prevailed up to that time, but to improve the system with the help of a reform. Although they were able to return and continue their work, this was not funded separately.

After the end of the war, several new laws were enacted, such as the "VEAV" (asset deprivation registration ordinance) in 1946. This meant that the owners of the seized property were obliged to register the property, company or other assets with the authorities. If it became known that owners deliberately failed to register, they were imprisoned.

Bankhaus Kathrein & Co announced a takeover, but this only affected the furniture of Bankhaus Reitler & Co. Due to a voluntary liquidation in 1938, the bank had to give up its own business premises and move the premises of the new bank. This was not done to take advantage of things, such as getting new inventory cheaply, but was necessary for the liquidation to run smoothly.

After the license was granted in 1920, the number of private banks continued to decrease and while there were 18 in 1955, there were only seven in 1986. Kathrein & Co was one of four remaining banks in Vienna. Most of them developed into joint stock banks during this time.

The restitution proceedings of the Reitler & Co bank stood out as a special case, because they were not affected by the formal Aryanization, but instead represented a liquidation by the Kathrein & Co bank. In 1952 there was finally an application for restitution proceedings in which the bank itself, the customer base, their earnings and the liquidation fee were reclaimed. This application was rejected by the Restitution Commission. It was not until 1955 that a comparison was made between the banks, in which the owners of Reitler & Co agreed to deletion from the commercial register. In contrast to the demands of 1952, the amount of compensation was small.

The Kathrein Privatbank from today's perspective

Kathrein Privatbank is still based in downtown Vienna and is one of the leading Austrian private banks. In addition to its activities as an asset manager, the bank has specialized in the sector of Austrian private foundations.

As a private bank for companies and private foundations, the services are aimed at entrepreneurs, entrepreneurial families and private foundations for assets from one million euros. The range of services includes the development of investment strategies, asset management, advice on setting up foundations and their management, as well as advice on company transfer, purchase and sale, inheritance and donation.

On January 1, 2013, Susanne Höllinger took up her new position as CEO of the private bank, replacing Christoph Klaus, who held this position for 13 years.

Kathrein Privatbank's product portfolio includes money market funds , bond funds , equity funds and alternative investments. In addition, the fund of the Russell Investment Group is offered.

The private bank also has its own foundation website, on which customers and interested parties can find everything they need to know about the private foundation and have the opportunity to find out more as a private person or entrepreneur. Information on tax law issues, assessment variants, publications and references can be found. The foundation office is headed by Heinrich Weninger.

Web links

literature

  • Peter Melichar: Reorganization in the banking sector: The Nazi measures and the problem of restitution. Oldenbourg Verlag, Vienna 2004.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b query for bank code 19150. In: SEPA payments directory of the Oesterreichische Nationalbank (OeNB) . (Requires browser reloading.)
  2. ↑ Information in the RZB Group's annual report (PDF; 3.4 MB), p. 64.
  3. ↑ a b Kathrein Privatbank website , accessed on November 16, 2013.
  4. ↑ RZB Annual Report 2012 (PDF; 3.4 MB), accessed on November 19, 2013.
  5. ↑ Peter Melichar : Reorganization in the banking system: The Nazi measures and the problem of restitution . 2004, p. 11f.
  6. ↑ Peter Melichar: Reorganization in the banking system: The Nazi measures and the problem of restitution. 2004, p. 112f.
  7. ↑ Peter Melichar: Reorganization in the banking system: The Nazi measures and the problem of restitution. 2004, p. 31f.
  8. ↑ Peter Melichar: Reorganization in the banking system: The Nazi measures and the problem of restitution. 2004, p. 66f.
  9. ↑ Peter Melichar: Reorganization in the banking system: The Nazi measures and the problem of restitution. 2004, p. 36f.
  10. ^ Theodor Venus, Alexandra-Eileen Wenck: The deprivation of Jewish assets as part of the Gildemeester campaign. Oldenbourg Verlag, Vienna 2004.
  11. ↑ Peter Melichar: Reorganization in the banking system: The Nazi measures and the problem of restitution. 2004, pp. 144f.
  12. ↑ Peter Melichar: Reorganization in the banking system: The Nazi measures and the problem of restitution. 2004, p. 146f.
  13. ↑ Peter Melichar: Reorganization in the banking system: The Nazi measures and the problem of restitution. 2004, p. 146f.
  14. ↑ Peter Melichar: Reorganization in the banking system: The Nazi measures and the problem of restitution. 2004, p. 198.
  15. ↑ Peter Melichar: Reorganization in the banking system: The Nazi measures and the problem of restitution. 2004, p. 154f.
  16. ^ Das Bankenmagazin , accessed on December 1, 2013.
  17. ^ Homepage Raiffeisen Zentralbank Österreich , accessed on November 16, 2013.
  18. ^ Raiffeisen International AG , accessed on December 13, 2013.
  19. ↑ Foundation Office ( Memento of the original dated February 3, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed on January 17, 2014. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.stiftungsoffice.at

Coordinates: 48 ° 12 ′ 46.5 ″  N , 16 ° 22 ′ 4.5 ″  E