Hope & Co.
Hope & Co. is the name of a famous Dutch bank that spanned two and a half centuries. Though the founders were Scotsmen, the bank was located in Amsterdam, and at the close of the 18th century it had offices in London as well.
Early days
Six of eight sons of the Scottish merchant Archibald Hope (1664–1743) – Archibald Jr. (1698–1734), Isaac, Zachary, Henry, Thomas (1704–1779), and Adrian (1709–1781) – were merchants of trade. They were active in shipping, storage, insurance, and credit in Amsterdam and Rotterdam. In 1720 they barely survived the bubble that led to the passage of the Bubble Act in London. Buist was correct about all family members except for his data on the father of Archibald I, called Harry, who was the son of James Hope, factoor in Dieppe and brother of Sir Thomas Hope, 1st Baronet. Many bankers in Holland at that time went bankrupt, and many (including Henry) left the country. That this year was an important one for Dutch bankers is shown by the fact that when Rotterdam issued new telephone numbers in the 20th century, Hope & Co. beat Mees & Zn. in snapping up the number ending with 1720.