History of EABH, The European Association for Banking and Financial

The European Association for Banking History (EABH) e.V. was founded in 1990 in Frankfurt, Germany by Manfred Pohl, as a forum for research into the history of banking, insurance and finance. Members  consist of close to 100 European and international banking, insurance and financial institutions, amongst them most of the European Central Banks.

OBJECTIVES
EABH is a European network that acts as a bridge between bankers, financiers, academics and archivists. EABH supports research into all aspects of banking, insurance and financial history, from the earliest innovations in the middle-ages, to developments since the industrial revolution and in the present. What drives the Association is the concept that the better our knowledge and understanding of past precedents in the field of banking and finance, the better equipped we are to make sound decisions today. For this reason the EABH encourages a genuine broadening of public understanding about how and why banks and financial institutions support and shape our economy and society.

ACTIVITIES
The Association supports the preservation of historical documents relating to banking and finance, promotes banking and financial archives, and supports the exchange of experience on best practices relating to banking and financial archives management, inter alia through the organisation of seminars and collaboration with scientific institutions. The EABH maintains a European network of professionals and academics, with the aim of strengthening the understanding of banking and finance in Europe. EABH members profit from trainings, conferences and proceeding publications which offer an opportunity to learn from the past in order to deal successfully with the challenges of the present. EABH promotes the art of the archivist and in so doing supports the circulation of sound information and new research findings in the field. The EABH offers assistance to its corporate members, advising on their archives´ organisation and development plans as well as on staff training.