Bank Handlowy w Warszawie S.A. recently celebrated 150 years of uninterrupted operations. It is the only such bank on Polish soil.
Very rare stock, high denomination. So far unlisted on OneBid.
format_quoteThe knowledge that Bank Handlowy w Warszawie S.A. was founded in 1870 is common, this fact does not need to be particularly emphasized. But few people realize that it is still operating today, uninterrupted since its founding. The bank, founded more than 150 years ago as a joint-stock company, remains exactly the same entity today, despite the fact that it started with joint-stock capital in rubles, survived the period of World War I, and especially the difficult liquidity of its first days and the introduction of the German mark as currency, after regaining independence, it continued to operate after converting its capital into Polish marks during the period of hyperinflation, and after the introduction of the zloty, it easily bypassed the wave of bank failures in 1925; it also continued to operate uninterruptedly during World War II and the communist period, being needed by the communists to conduct settlements with the normal world. During none of these periods did it cease operations, which in modern times allowed its shares to return to listing on the Warsaw Stock Exchange, just as they had when it was founded. With what results? And how many known joint-stock banks in Europe and the US have been operating continuously, unchanged, for more than 150 years? And to think that something like this happened in this small, economically poor Poland, perpetually troubled by conflicts. The XVI issue of shares of Bank Handlowy w Warszawie S.A. was the last issue carried out in the interwar period, but while share slips amounting to 100 zlotys (especially these), 500 zlotys, or 1,000 zlotys appear regularly in collector circulation, the 5,000 zlotys share slip of the XVI issue offered at auction is rare. In truth, it's extremely rare, as I'm not aware of any example of this share being offered at public auction, and I'm aware of the existence of only 4 pieces of this share, one of which remains in the collection of Bank Handlowy Warsaw itselfformat_quote
