A 1875 Envelope Addressed to Sylk's Hotel

The Nederlandsch-Indische Handelsbank (NIHB, Dutch East Indies Trade Bank) was established in 1863 to finance trade between the Netherlands and the Dutch East Indies.

In 1920 the bank opened branches in Bombay, Calcutta, Shanghai, and Kobe to aid in cotton trading with Japan.

In 1959, its Indonesian activities were nationalized and eventually led to the formation of Bank Mandiri in 1998. In 1960, NIHB's remaining activities were acquired by the Rotterdamsche Bank. The bank in turn merged with Amsterdamsche Bank to create AMRO Bank. A few more mergers ensued which finally resulted in creation of the ABN AMRO Bank.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nederlandsch-Indische_Handelsbank

In the early 19th century, the Sassoons, originating from Baghdad (with deeper roots perhaps reaching back to Aleppo), were a distinguished Jewish banking family, serving the Ottomans as treasurers. But as political tides shifted under the new wali, David Sassoon (1792–1864) emigrated in 1832, taking refuge in Bombay along with his large family and escaping persecution.

Fluent in Hebrew, Arabic, Persian, Turkish, and Hindustani (though he notably never mastered English), David Sassoon quickly carved his mark in Bombay’s mercantile landscape. He launched David Sassoon & Co. in a modest counting house at 9 Tamarind Street, trading in banking, property, silks, spices, wool, cotton yarn, and opium.

The firm expanded at a dizzying pace, establishing branches in Calcutta, Karachi, Hong Kong (1843), Canton, Shanghai (1845), and cities across Japan, the Persian Gulf, and the UK. Utilizing its own fleet of “opium clippers,” it dominated the India-China opium route, at one point handling 70% of Indian opium trade, surpassing competitors like Jardine Matheson and Dent & Co..

But David Sassoon’s vision went beyond the seams of commerce. He engaged in banking, helping establish HSBC in 1865 and funded the early Anglo-California Bank and the Imperial Bank of Persia. Back home, he nurtured community: founding the Magen David Synagogue (Byculla, 1861), a Talmud Torah school, Talmudic summer synagogue in Pune, and supporting famine relief, sailors’ homes, orphan funds, and more.

Upon David’s passing, eldest son Albert (Abdallah) took charge, ushering in the age of mill-building, textile manufacturing, and infrastructure that transformed Bombay into India’s industrial powerhouse. Albert launched cotton mills, the city’s first wet dock (Sassoon Docks, 1875), funded schools (like Elphinstone High), erected a statue of the Prince of Wales, and served on the Legislative Council.

Later, Elias David Sassoon struck out on his own in 1867, founding E.D. Sassoon & Co., which soon outgrew even the parent firm in capital and dynamism.

At the cusp of global trade, the Sassoons leveraged the post-Opium War openings. In 1844 Elias ventured to Canton, then Shanghai, where he planted deep roots. By the early 20th century, the family was among Shanghai’s elite, owning monumental structures including the Sassoon House (1929 Art Deco—today’s Fairmont Peace Hotel), once a glamorous haven of colonial high society.

Their ventures spanned insurance, shipping, rail loans, mills (rice, paper, flour), breweries, and laundries, diversifying across Asia.

Behind the glittering empire, the Sassoons opened doors for other Jewish families. Notably, the Kadoories, now famed owners of The Peninsula Hotels and Hong Kong’s China Light & Power; once worked for the Sassoons. Similarly, Silas Hardoon, who began in Bombay, rose to immense real estate wealth in Shanghai, his legacy enduring in the iconic Hardoon Building. By the 1930s, Baghdadi Jews, though few in number, owned much of Shanghai’s Bund, creating a lasting architectural and social imprint.

In Bombay, the Sassoons shaped the city’s geography and identity, places like Kala Ghoda and Sans Souci (David’s palatial Byculla residence) remain markers of their cultural imprint. David hosted Raj dignitaries, imbued his home with French elegance, and fostered a unique blend of identities: Jewish diaspora, Bombay cosmopolitanism, and colonial modernity.

But the empire would eventually wane. In the 1930s–40s, the Sassoons began divesting Bombay properties and gradually retreated, moving away to places like the Bahamas. Their lands gave way to the rise of India’s modern billionaire-driven skyline, but their architectural and philanthropic legacy endures.

Sources:

 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Sassoon_%26_Co. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sassoon_family 

https://www.theindiaforum.in/history/rise-and-fall-sassoons https://scroll.in/magazine/1075379/how-the-sassoons-of-bombay-became-one-of-chinas-wealthiest-families 

https://www.gatewayhouse.in/the-story-of-the-sassoons/ https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/david-sassoon-the-biggest-wealth-generator-in-bombay-4523271.html https://www.mcgm.gov.in/irj/go/km/docs/documents/D%20Ward/Heritage-Sites/97_Legacy%20of%20D%20Ward_Article_David%20Sassoon.pdf