Which London bank failed in 1866, helping trigger a major Victorian financial panic?

Overend, Gurney and Company failed in 1866, helping trigger a major Victorian financial panic in Britain.

The firm began as a bill-broking business and became one of the largest financial houses in the world. Its conversion into a limited company in 1865 encouraged expansion, but the firm had accumulated risky loans and investments. When confidence weakened, depositors and creditors demanded cash that the company could not provide.

Its collapse caused a run on banks and forced the Bank of England to provide emergency support by lending under a suspended legal limit. The panic spread through credit markets and contributed to a severe economic downturn. Overend, Gurney is sometimes confused with Barings Bank, whose collapse in 1890 followed losses connected with Argentina. The 1866 episode also shows that major market crises can begin with failures in credit and banking institutions, not only with a sudden fall in a stock index.