Thebanker of ancient times was employed within financial activities, during the ancientMesopotamian,ancient Greek andancient Roman periods.

While certain families of Mesopotamia might be thought of as banking families, according to one source, these families' economic activities were not banking proper. This is because the families charged the same for loans as they gave in interest on deposits, so accordingly, their situation with foreign enterprises was one in which they did not participate inarbitrage, in addition to the absence of an economic situation where-by credit provision might increase the quantity ofspecie (i.e. coins) present with individuals. TheHouse of Egibi were such a family, living during the Neo-Babylonian and Persian periods, and theHouse of Murashu were another, living at a time during the 5th century BCE. In addition to these two, theBorsippa based family,Ea-iluta-bani, were also active during the Neo-Babylonia time-period and later. All three families are classified asmerchant bankers by Nemet-Nejat.^[1][2][3]

Following the unification of thecity-states inAssyria andSumer bySargon of Akkad into asingle empire ruled from hishome city circa 2334 BC,common Mesopotamian standards forlength,area,volume,weight, andtime used byartisanguilds in each city was promulgated byNaram-Sin of Akkad (c. 2254–2218 BC), Sargon's grandson, including forshekels.^[4] In December 1901 and January 1902, at the direction of archaeologistJacques de Morgan,FatherJean-Vincent Scheil,OP found a 2.25meter (or 88.5inch) tallbasalt ordioritestele in three pieces inscribed with4,130 lines ofcuneiform law dictated byHammurabi (c. 1792–1750 BC) of theFirst Babylonian Empire in the city ofShush, Iran.^[5][6][7]

Code of Hammurabi Law 100 stipulatedrepayment of aloan by adebtor to acreditor on aschedule with amaturity date specified inwrittencontractual terms. Laws 101 and 102 stipulated that ashipping agent,factor, orship charterer was only required to repay theprincipal of a loan to their creditor in the event of anet income loss or atotal loss due to anAct of God. Law 103 stipulated that an agent, factor, or charterer was byforce majeurerelieved of theirliability for an entire loan in the event that the agent, factor, or charterer was the victim oftheft during the term of theircharterparty upon provision of anaffidavit of the theft to their creditor.^[8][9][10]

Law 122 stipulated that adepositor ofgold,silver, or otherchattel/movable property forsafekeeping must present all articles and a signedcontract ofbailment to anotary before depositing the articles with a banker, and Law 123 stipulated that a banker was discharged of anyliability from a contract of bailment if the notary denied the existence of the contract. Law 124 stipulated that a depositor with anotarized contract of bailment was entitled toredeem the entire value of their deposit, and Law 125 stipulated that a banker wasliable for replacement of depositsstolen while in theirpossession.^[11][12][10]

InAncient Greece the role today filled by bankers fell to thetrapezites (Ancient Greek:τραπεζίται (trapezitai), singulartrapezites, so-called from their use ofτράπεζαι (trapezai), a type of table). Initially active during the 5th century BCE, thetrapezitai provided a variety of services, primarilymoney-changing, providing interest-payments on deposited monies, pawnbrokering, acting asnotaries, and the safe-guarding of valuables.^{[13][14][15][16][17]}

The earliest recordedtrapezitai are known to have participated in private enterprise; in the first instance they were greatly reliant on transactions generated by money-changing activity, but they also accepted deposits and made and took payments from individuals.^[15]

Ancient Grecian bankers were in the first instancemoneychangers (kollybistes^[18]) andpawnbrokers, who operated in themarketplace or at festival sites, changing the coinage of foreign merchants into local currency.^[19]

Many early bankers in Greek city-states belonged to themetic status. Money-lending was very often an activity for foreigners living as so-called outsiders within society. Trade and commercial activities were deemed wholly unsuited to the status and situation of thenoble élite of society because these activities were allegedly a source ofcorruption; instead funds, and accordingly wealth, were obtained primarily by way of militancy, not by way of commerce.^[1][20][21]

The task of keeping the deposited wealth provided to the temple ofAsklepios was often allotted to theneokoros orzakoros; or atKos to thehierophylakes, who were also the record-keepers of such exchanges.^[22][23]

It was an established pattern of behaviour for a banker inAthens,Aigina and elsewhere, in the interests of the security of the assets entrusted to him, to have his wife wed his slave after his death, in that the slave had inherited his previous owner's bank upon his death.^[24]

The first person to have participated in ancient society to some degree as a banker was named Philostephanos (of Corinth).^[25]

Aslave namedPasion, for a time owned by Archestratos and Antisthenes, who were partners of a banking firm inPeiraieus, was for a timeAthens' most important banker, after hismanumission to the metic class. Pasion operated as a banker from 394 BCE to sometime during the 370s. His establishment was subsequently inherited by his own slave, Phormio.^{[24][26][27][28][29][30][31]}

The banker-slaveHermias, allegedly aeunuch, was manumitted by the bankerEuboulos, and is attested to have behaved subsequently toward the lands ofAssos andAtarneus somehow tyrannically.^[32]His adopted daughter marriedAristotle, the circumstances of this marriage being arranged by Hermias himself.^[24]

Early bankers were known primarily asMensarii,Mensularii andNumularii, orargentarii. Additionally to a lesser extent individuals involved in financial activities were known ascoactores,coactores argenterii,collectarii, andstipulatores argenterii. Bankers operated from either appointment by the government and so were tasked with collecting taxes, or instead operated independently. Accordingly,Mensarii were distinguished fromargenterii by the fact of the former operating under state assistance while the latter participating on the basis of private enterprise.Argenterii evolved to provide the function of credit provision on a short-term basis for individuals at auctions.^{[13][33][34][35]}

Persons employed in the professional capacities of money-changing and assaying were known asargyramoiboi.^[36]

According toCallistratus, females were barred from activity as bankers by Roman law.^[37]

L. Aemilius Papius,M. Atilius Regulus and M. Scribonius Libo were made a threemensarii commission during 216.^[38]

• Eubulus
• History of banking
• List of banking families

• History of banking
• Ancient history
• Economy of ancient Greece
• Economy of ancient Rome

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