Bank of family that lent to popes and emperors may be for sale

A bust of Jakob Fugger in the Fuggerei social housing complex in Augsburg, Germany. (Courtesy: Bloomberg)

The Fugger family was once one of Europe’s most influential banking dynasties, building trading routes and lending money to Holy Roman Emperors and popes. Now, a private bank founded by one of its descendants may be coming up for sale.

Vienna Insurance Group AG is preparing to sell Fuerst Fugger Privatbank AG, a small wealth manager founded in in 1954, according to people familiar with the plans. A decision may come after VIG finalizes the takeover of Nuernberger Versicherung AG, which currently owns the bank, in the second half of the year, they said, asking for anonymity because the plan hasn’t been publicly announced.

The private bank manages almost €7 billion ($8 billion) of assets, mostly from high-net-worth clients and via a network of intermediaries. VIG currently values the bank at about €120 million, but elevated interest because of its European banking license could push the price higher, one of the people said.

No final decision has been made on a sale and plans hinge on VIG finalizing the Nuernberger transaction. Representatives for VIG, Fuerst Fugger and Nuernberger declined to comment.

Based in the Fugger family’s renaissance palace in Augsburg, the firm comes with one of the most storied names in European history. The family rose to prominence in the 15th and 16th century, when it oversaw one of Europe’s widest network of precious metal mines, trade houses and banks. Funding from the Fuggers helped the Habsburgs’ rise, and their influence spanned the Vatican and European nobility, according to a family history.

Its financial prowess ended by the 17th century after several sovereign defaults in Spain. The Habsburgs still owe astronomical sums to the Fuggers, though there haven’t been any attempts to recoup money since the Congress of Vienna in 1815, descendant Maria-Elisabeth Countess Thun-Fugger told the Wirtschaftswoche magazine in a 2016 interview.

“I still like to bring it up whenever I meet a member of the Habsburg family,” she said in the interview.

Family descendants now live off revenue from 3,200 hectares (7,907 acres) of forest in Germany and other assets, which also helps fund charitable operations, including one of the first low-income housing projects in the world. The 500-year old Fuggerei still charges the equivalent of one Rhenish gulden, or 88 euro cents ($1), and three daily prayers for annual rent in Augsburg for its 150 inhabitants.

Fuerst Fugger Privatbank was founded by Friedrich Carl Fuerst Fugger-Babenhausen, who sought to bring the family’s finances to its own institution. It was taken over by Nuernberger, an insurer, in 1999, but the bank still advertises the family’s centuries-old legacy to attract business. It employed 144 people and booked €13.6 million of net income in 2024.