History
The bank traces its origins to 1672, when Sir Richard Hoare gained the freedom of the Goldsmiths' Company in London. The business began under the sign of the Golden Bottle in Cheapside, where the goldsmith safeguarded clients' gold and valuables; in 1690 it moved to Fleet Street, where the bank still operates today. Its historical clients include John Dryden, Jane Austen and Lord Byron. After the First World War most of Britain's private banks were absorbed by larger players, and Hoares remained the sole surviving independent — the country's oldest private bank and, by a widely cited estimate, the fourth-oldest bank still trading in the world.
Ownership has stayed within the family for twelve generations: the bank is owned by eight direct descendants of the founder, and of its seven partners six belong to the eleventh generation and one is the first representative of the twelfth. The partnership model, with owners personally involved, explains the bank's signature conservatism: it has survived three and a half centuries of crises through cautious lending and high liquidity, and rapid growth has never been its goal.
Concept
C. Hoare & Co, or Hoares, is a British family-owned private bank that is still owned by the founder's descendants and operates from its historic office at 37 Fleet Street. It represents the twelfth generation of a family enterprise and a rare European example of a private bank that has kept family ownership across centuries.
It is a boutique private bank for clients with a British tax and personal footprint. Personal banking relationships, conservative lending and support for family-office and philanthropic structures matter more here than a global investment platform. In 2016 the bank sold its wealth management business to Cazenove Capital (Schroders) for around £72 million, and in 2017 it transferred its brokerage and custody operations to Canaccord Genuity. Today the core of the business is deposits, secured lending, payments and stewardship of family wealth, with discretionary asset management outsourced to external partners.
Status and Regulation
- Address — 37 Fleet Street, London, since 1690.
- Until 1929 — a partnership; then a private unlimited liability company. Owners bear personal liability for obligations.
- Primary supervision — PRA and FCA.
- UK client deposits are protected by the FSCS: from 1 December 2025 the limit was raised from £85,000 to £120,000 per depositor (£240,000 on a joint account). Temporarily high balances — for example from a house sale or an inheritance received — are covered up to £1.4 million for six months.
- Pre-tax profit for the year to 31 March 2025 — £63.7 million against £80.8 million the year before (down 21%); net income fell from £271.7 million to £249.4 million. Total deposits rose about 5% to £6.4 billion. The bank attributes the lower profit to a return to a "more normal" level after the base rate fell (C. Hoare & Co data, results for the financial year to March 2025).
- The regulatory profile is checked through the bank's public disclosures, the FCA/PRA and financial statements; the absence of notable public enforcement action does not replace separate due diligence on a specific client.
What the Bank Does and Does Not Do
What it does
- Takes deposits and runs current accounts.
- Lends against property and for private family needs.
- Supports the client's family office and personal administration.
- Stewards philanthropic structures and foundations.
- Coordinates British estate planning and wealth succession with external lawyers and tax advisers.
What it does not do
- Does not manage an investment portfolio inside the bank at the level of Pictet, UBS or Coutts.
- Wealth management is usually outsourced to Cazenove / Schroders, J.P. Morgan, a Swiss partnership bank or an external manager.
- Is not a primary venue for brokerage and custody of large securities portfolios.
- Is not suited to crypto assets, aggressive alternative strategies or complex structured products.
Threshold and Onboarding
Hoares does not publish a formal entry minimum. The bank operates as an institution of personal relationships: what matters is the British connection, the quality of the referral (introduction), a confirmed source of wealth and a clear family objective. For the family-office tier the reference points are the complexity of the family and a long service horizon, while the size of the first deposit is secondary.
| Stage | Content | Timeline |
|---|---|---|
| Introduction | through an existing client, a UK solicitor, an accountant or a family-office adviser | a cold application almost never works |
| First meeting | 37 Fleet Street or a closed call with a senior banker: family, assets, British connection, purpose of the relationship | 2–4 weeks |
| Client due diligence | passport, address, source-of-wealth statement, confirmation of the wealth event, independent verification by an adviser | 2–4 weeks |
| Compliance committee | review of the family, financial and reputational profile | 3–6 weeks |
| Mandate signing | second meeting, opening of the relationship, first transfer of funds | 1–2 weeks |
A UK resident with a clear profile usually completes the process in 8–16 weeks. A non-resident without a strong connection to the UK takes noticeably longer or does not pass the initial filter: the bank looks at property, family, business, tax position and the history of presence in the UK.
Russian clients in 2025–2026
For clients of Russian origin, Hoares is one of the most conservative British options. The bank's small size, family ownership model and unlimited liability of the owners intensify the reputational filter: what matters is not only capital and documents, but also the reason why a British family bank specifically should be the core of the relationship.
Workable scenarios
- A UK-domiciled client, or one with stable UK residency before 2022 and many years of presence in the country.
- Inheritance from a UK-resident parent or spouse.
- A professional or entrepreneur with long-standing British ties and an introduction through an existing Hoares client.
- A prepared source-of-wealth pack with a letter from a UK solicitor or accountant.
- Clean screening against UK OFSI, EU, OFAC and the bank's internal lists.
Where there is little point applying
- A client resident in Russia without a working British connection.
- A large client of Russian origin without confirmed presence in the UK and a clear reason for Hoares.
- In such a profile Coutts, HSBC UK Premier or Swiss partnership banks are more often realistic.
- Media or PEP sensitivity without an explanation prepared in advance.
- Sectors with a sanctions flag, or payments the bank cannot explain within its risk appetite.
Cases from Practice
Multi-generational British family
A UK-domiciled client, £18 million in assets, three generations of history with the bank. Opened banking services and support for a charitable foundation. Investments run through a separate Schroders mandate.
Inheritance from a UK resident
A client of Russian origin, £6 million in assets from a UK-resident parent. Introduced through a UK solicitor, a full probate pack and an explanation of the source of funds; the compliance committee took four months.
Application without a British profile
A non-resident UHNW client, £15 million in assets, primary home in Switzerland and no British ties, tried to enter Hoares on the strength of capital alone. Such a profile rarely clears the introduction stage. We redirected the route to Pictet and Coutts alongside a move to the UK, where the banking logic matched the client's actual plan.
Where Hoares Is Appropriate and Where It Does Not Fit
Appropriate
- Multi-generational families with a UK domicile and long British ties.
- A client for whom the bank's history since 1672, family ownership and continuity of the relationship matter.
- UHNW capital focused on British property, with a need for conservative banking and secured lending.
- Clients who need foundations and philanthropic structures and family governance support.
- Clients who already have an external wealth manager.
Does not fit
- A non-UK resident without substantial British ties.
- A client who needs full-scale wealth management inside the bank itself.
- An international UHNW client with active presence in Asia, the Middle East or the US.
- A client of Russian origin without a durable British connection.
- Crypto assets or a portfolio overloaded with alternative investments.
- Situations that need fast onboarding without a personal introduction.
Alternatives
| Bank | Profile | Minimum |
|---|---|---|
| Coutts | British UHNW, royal heritage, full-service private bank | £3M+ |
| HSBC UK Premier | multi-jurisdiction reach and HSBC's global network | £100,000 |
| Barclays Private Bank | asset booking in the UK and Europe, mortgage and Lombard credit | £5M |
| Pictet | Swiss partnership bank and long investment horizon | CHF 5M |
| Mirabaud | boutique partnership model and personal approach | CHF 3M |
Frequently asked questions
Why the 2016 sale of the wealth management business matters so much
Hoares deliberately narrowed its focus to the banking relationship and the family office. Wealth management requires a separate platform, an investment committee and scale. For a new client this means: Hoares can be a long private-banking relationship, but not the sole provider of portfolio management.
What an unlimited liability company means for the client
A private unlimited company means that the shareholders are liable without the standard limit tied to their shares. In banking practice this reinforces a conservative culture: risk management is built around the personal reputation and capital of the owner family. For the client this does not remove banking risk, but it explains the caution in onboarding, lending and reputational exposure.
How Hoares differs from Coutts
Hoares was founded in 1672 and remains a family-owned private unlimited company. Coutts was founded in 1692, but is owned by NatWest Group and offers a broader private-banking and wealth-management perimeter. Put simply: Hoares is a boutique banking house plus family office; Coutts is larger, broader and closer to a full-cycle private bank.
What is needed to confirm the source of wealth
Tax returns for 3–5 years, bank statements for 24 months, and documents on the wealth-formation event: a sale-and-purchase agreement and audit reports for a business sale, probate documents for an inheritance, records for multi-generational wealth. For a client of Russian origin, a letter from a UK solicitor, an accountant's letter and character references are usually needed. See Source of Funds.
How to get an introduction to Hoares
Through an existing client of the bank, a UK solicitor with a genuine relationship with the bank, an ICAEW-accredited accountant or a family-office adviser. A cold application through the website is almost never the best route. private.law works with UK advisers who understand the format of an introduction to Hoares.
How Hoares is useful as part of an architecture
Hoares is useful as a long-term banking relationship: a family connection, conservative lending, stewardship of foundations and a dedicated team. Investments are better placed with an external manager. For a UK-domiciled client this is often a two-element construction: Hoares for the banking core, and Schroders / Pictet / Cazenove or another manager for the portfolio.
What the standard team per client looks like
Usually a senior banker, a support officer and a compliance contact. For family mandates a foundations officer is added. Hoares' value lies precisely in the stability of the team: the client does not have to re-explain the history of the family, assets and philanthropic structures every year.
Evolution and today's profile
The bank has spent the last decade on focus. Having sold wealth management and custody in 2016–2017, Hoares concentrated on what it does best: deposits, secured lending and payments for families with a British footprint. The low rates of the 2010s and the subsequent tightening cycle tested the model — profit fluctuates with the base rate, but the deposit base keeps growing and the level of capital and liquidity remains high. For the client this means the predictability and resilience needed for a long family horizon.