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Barings Bank

Historic Trading Companies and Banks

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Barings Bank was a British merchant bank headquartered in London, founded in 1762 by Francis Baring, that grew into one of the most important financial institutions in Europe, helping finance the 1802 Louisiana Purchase and earning the description of a sixth great European power by 1818. It collapsed on February 26, 1995 after unauthorized derivatives trading by an employee in its Singapore office, Nick Leeson, produced losses of 827 million pounds concealed through falsified accounts, and the bank was subsequently acquired by the ING Group for a nominal one pound.

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