How Medieval Bankers Made Money

How did bankers get rich in the Middle Ages — with no banks, no ATMs, no wire transfers, and a Church that considered charging interest a sin punishable by hell itself? This is the story of how a handful of Italian merchants behind wooden benches built the financial system that ran medieval Europe — and eventually financed kings, popes, and wars. From currency exchange scams hidden inside "fair" exchange rates, to the invention of the bill of exchange, to the spectacular collapse of the Bardi, the Peruzzi, and eventually even the Medici Bank itself — this is the real story of how medieval banking worked, and why it still shapes the banking system you use today. You'll learn: — Why the word "bank" comes from a wooden bench, and why "bankrupt" comes from a broken one — How medieval bankers got around the Church's total ban on charging interest — How the bill of exchange let merchants move fortunes across Europe without moving a single coin — Why King Edward III's unpaid war debts destroyed two of Europe's biggest banks — How the Medici Bank rebuilt trust after that collapse — and how it eventually fell to the exact same mistake If you enjoyed discovering the strange financial world hiding underneath medieval history, subscribe for more deep dives into the economics of history's most powerful institutions. #MedievalHistory #MedievalBanking #Medici #HistoryDocumentary #EconomicHistory #Florence #RenaissanceHistory