Take Your Partners : Orion, the Consortium Banks and the Transformation of the Euromarkets

Take Your Partners: Orion, the Consortium Banks and the Transformation of the Euromarkets tells the story of Orion, setting it within the context of the development of consortium banking and the Euromarkets. Orion was the most ambitiously conceived and, in its heyday, the most successful of the consortium banks. Covering Orion, the consortium banks and the European banking clubs, this volume fills a gap in the literature on late twentieth century banks and banking. The project to write the Orion story had its origins at a dinner to celebrate the 75th birthday of William de Gelsey, who worked for the bank in a senior capacity from 1971 to 1989. Together with Lord Swaythling, who as David Montagu led Orion at its peak and who sadly did not live to see the completion of this book, a project was launched to write the history of the bank. A group of ex-Orion executives, Patrick Browning, Rod Chamberlain, Charles Fisher, Marking the 30th anniversary of the formation of Orion Bank in 1970, financial historian Richard Roberts has written a history of Orion and the rise and decline of the consortium banking movement. Consortium banks were formed as joint ventures to enable banks to operate in the booming Euromarkets, with virtually every major international bank participating in a consortium bank during their heyday in the 1970s and 1980s. Orion Bank was one of the leading players in the Euromarkets in those decades: its shareholders were six of the biggest banks in the world from the three major trading blocks: Chase Manhattan, Royal Bank of Canada, NatWest, Westdeutsche Landesbank, Credito Italiano and Mitsubishi Bank. Like other consortiums banks, Orion Bank was prominent in Eurocurrency syndicated lending, but more unusually, it was also a top Eurobond lead manager. The story of Orion exemplifies the tensions inherent in the joint venture approach to business development and the strategic dilemmas facing consortium bank managements and shareholders. Richard Roberts uses primary archival papers and interviews with former Orion executives and other bankers prominent in consortium and investment banking to present an authoritative case study with great topical relevance as today's European banking industry continues to integrate across borders. Take Your Partners is also an invaluable source of reference for anyone with an interest in the Euromarkets and the development of international banking. Front Matter....Pages i-xvi Meeting in Manhattan....Pages 1-2 Origins of the Euromarkets....Pages 3-15 Rise of consortium banking....Pages 17-39 Formation of Orion....Pages 41-53 Orion gets going....Pages 55-75 Stormy weather: Montagu takes the helm....Pages 77-89 Petrodollars....Pages 91-109 Competition and innovation....Pages 111-127 Shareholders and management....Pages 129-143 Swimming against the tide....Pages 145-160 Orion Royal Bank....Pages 161-176 Decline of consortium banking....Pages 177-199 Consortia and strategic alliances in finance....Pages 201-209 The legacy of Orion....Pages 211-212 Back Matter....Pages 213-359