Our History
A Family Legacy of Private Financiers
Masari Credit Banc finds its origin in centuries of heritage and financial distinction. With roots reaching back over 500 years, it re-emerged in the modern era to reclaim its place among the world’s most trusted financial institutions.
Receipt of Payment for a Debt Owed by the King of Aragon to Benveniste (Spain, February 17, 1402)
The family’s origins date back to the Benveniste banking dynasty, one of the most influential financial families since the 13th and 14th centuries, entrusted with financing royal courts and global trade.
By the 16th century, its forebears helped establish one of the most powerful private banks of the era, funding international commerce, maritime expeditions, and trade routes that shaped the global economy. Doña Gracia Nasi, a visionary leader in the lineage, expanded the family’s banking and trading empire, becoming one of history’s wealthiest women and most influential financiers.
From financing royal courts in 14th-century Castile to facilitating gold-backed transactions across the Ottoman world, the family behind Masari Credit Banc played a defining role in the early architecture of global finance. A cornerstone of this heritage found its way into Aleppo, Syria. A once cosmopolitan crossroads of merchants, currencies, and commerce.
It was in this vibrant marketplace that our ancestors, alongside other renowned Jewish banking families, helped bridge East and West; facilitating trade across Europe, Asia, and North Africa. Legend holds that King David himself passed through Aleppo, where the land was said to flow with milk and honey—a symbol of divine abundance that echoed the city’s enduring spirit.
They transacted in currencies like the Venetian zecchini, Ottoman para, and Austrian thaler, with a philosophy rooted not only in finance but also in relationships. Deals were sealed on trust, gold, and word alone — principles that continue to shape the way we do business today.
Masari Credit Banc will continue to combine centuries-old values with forward-thinking strategies to meet the evolving needs of the next generation of global clients.
