Robarts, Lubbock & Co

Robarts, Lubbock & Co (1772-1914), established in London, was a past constituent of Coutts & Co.

Brief history

This private bank was established in 1860 through the merger of Lubbock, Forster & Co (est. 1772) and Robarts, Curtis & Co (est. 1791). It was the last private bank to have a seat in the London Clearing House. In 1914, a year after the death of its senior partner Sir John Lubbock, later 1st Lord Avebury, one of the City's most influential bankers, the firm merged with Coutts & Co of London. It then had reserves of £500,000 and customer balances of well over £4 million.

Published histories

W Howarth, The banks in the Clearing House (London, 1907)
E Healey, Coutts & Co 1692-1992. The portrait of a private bank (London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1992)
W G Hutchinson, Life of Sir John Lubbock, Lord Avebury, (London, 1911)
P E Smart, 'A Victorian polymath. Sir John Lubbock', Journal of the Institute of Bankers, 100 (1979)

Summary of our archive holdings

For more information about these records, or to enquire about using them for research, please contact the Coutts Archivist: tracey.earl@coutts.com.

For help understanding words used here, check our glossary of banking record types (24 KB).

signature books 1860-1914
registers of wills and probates 1860-1914
letterbooks 1850-[1915]
staff books 1863-[1915]
builders' drawings 1861
cheques and miscellaneous papers
amalgamation papers n.d.