Henri Germain

Henri Germain
File:Henri Germain - 1824 - 1905.jpg
Born	19 February 1824 Lyon, France
Died	2 February 1905 (1905-02-03) (aged 80)
Occupation	Banker
Spouse(s)	Blanche Germain
Children	André Germain
Parent(s)	Henri Germain Claudine Lupin

Henri Germain (19 February 1824 – 2 February 1905) was a French banker and politician.

Early life

Henri Germain was born on 19 February 1824 in Lyon. His father, Henri Germain, was a silk businessman, and his mother was Claudine Lupin. He received a law degree. He was a follower of Saint-Simonianism, and François Barthélemy Arlès-Dufour (1797-1872) became his mentor.

Career

Germain founded Crédit Lyonnais on 6 July 1863. It became the first bank in France to offer savings accounts with interest. The first shareholders were Saint-Simon followers like Paulin Talabot (1799–1885), Barthélemy Prosper Enfantin (1796–1864), Arlès-Dufour, and Michel Chevalier (1806–1879). Two years later, in 1865, he founded the Société Foncière Lyonnaise, a real estate company. In 1892, he spearheaded the construction of the Boulevard Carnot, then known as the Boulevard de la Foncière-Lyonnaise.

Germain was a member of the General Council of Ain from 1871 to 1883. He then served as a member of the National Assembly from 1868 to 1893.

Personal life and death

Germain was married to Blanche Germain. They resided at Villa Orangini in Cimiez, Nice. Their son, André Germain (1881–1971), was a writer.

Germain died on 2 February 1905.

Bibliography

• La Situation financière de la France en 1886
• L’État politique de la France en 1886

References

• Bouvier, Jean (1961). Le Crédit Lyonnais de 1863 à 1882: Les années de formation d'une banque de dépôts. Paris: SEVPEN.
• Landes, David S. (1963). "A Chapter in the Financial Revolution of the Nineteenth Century: The Rise of French Deposit Banking," The Journal of Economic History, Vol. XXIII, No. 2, pp. 224–31.