Which British bank failed in 1866, helping trigger the financial panic known as the Overend, Gurney crisis?

Overend, Gurney and Company failed in 1866, helping trigger the financial panic known as the Overend, Gurney crisis.

The London firm had begun as a bill broker and became one of the largest financial businesses in the world. It expanded into riskier lending and investments, including railway-related ventures. When confidence weakened, creditors demanded repayment and the firm could not meet its obligations.

The company suspended payments on May 10, 1866. Its collapse caused runs on banks and discount houses, while share prices fell sharply on the London Stock Exchange. The Bank of England eventually acted as lender of last resort by relaxing its normal reserve constraints under a government-backed suspension of the Bank Charter Act.

The episode showed how the failure of a major intermediary could transmit stress throughout a financial system. It is sometimes described as a banking panic rather than a single-day stock-market crash.