Great frauds in history… William Strahan’s stolen bonds
Eton-educated William Snow, AKA William Strahan, inherited a huge fortune and joined the family bank. On the face of it he was a pillar of respectable society. But he and his partners sold investors' assets to bail themselves out when they went broke.


William Snow was born in 1807, going on to study at Eton and Cambridge before changing his name to William Strahan in 1830 in order to inherit a large fortune of around £200,000 (equivalent to £18m today) from his great uncle. Two years later he joined the family bank (then known as Snow, Snow, Strahan, Paul and Paul) as a partner. Over the next two decades his wealth and social position led to his being granted the honorary title of High Sheriff of Surrey as well as being appointed to the boards of various companies.
What was the scam?
By 1850 the bank was barely solvent, even taking into account the partners’ personal assets. Over the next few years things got even worse as they made large loans to support various unsuccessful projects, including railways in France and Italy, as well as a colliery in Mostyn in Wales, which ended up requiring increasing amounts of cash. In desperation they sold bonds that they were keeping on behalf of clients, hoping that they would be able to buy them back before the clients noticed that they were missing.
What happened next?
By 1854 Strahan and his two other partners, John Dean Paul and Robert Makin Bates, had run out of money to steal and rumours were flying around London that the bank was insolvent. John Griffith, canon of Rochester Cathedral and one of the bank’s oldest clients, went to the bank’s offices and demanded to withdraw £5,000 (£472,000 today) in bonds that they held on his behalf. Strahan confessed that the bonds had been sold, along with other bonds totalling £100,000 (£9.45m). Strahan and the other two partners were arrested, convicted and sentenced to 14 years in prison (though this was later reduced to three years).
Subscribe to MoneyWeek
Subscribe to MoneyWeek today and get your first six magazine issues absolutely FREE

Sign up to Money Morning
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Lessons for investors
By the time the bank collapsed, its liabilities were £652,593 with only £127,670 in assets, leaving a deficiency of £524,923 (£49.5m). The bank’s depositors and creditors got some of their money back through the liquidation of the partners’ estates, but they would have to wait more than two decades, and even then would only get a fraction of what they were owed. Given that the bank’s dire position was mostly due to bad loans to two firms totalling £483,000 (£45.7m), the bank’s lending portfolio was clearly not diversified enough. The bank should also have been more ruthless in cutting its losses, rather than lending more money to doomed projects.
Sign up for MoneyWeek's newsletters
Get the latest financial news, insights and expert analysis from our award-winning MoneyWeek team, to help you understand what really matters when it comes to your finances.

Matthew graduated from the University of Durham in 2004; he then gained an MSc, followed by a PhD at the London School of Economics.
He has previously written for a wide range of publications, including the Guardian and the Economist, and also helped to run a newsletter on terrorism. He has spent time at Lehman Brothers, Citigroup and the consultancy Lombard Street Research.
Matthew is the author of Superinvestors: Lessons from the greatest investors in history, published by Harriman House, which has been translated into several languages. His second book, Investing Explained: The Accessible Guide to Building an Investment Portfolio, is published by Kogan Page.
As senior writer, he writes the shares and politics & economics pages, as well as weekly Blowing It and Great Frauds in History columns He also writes a fortnightly reviews page and trading tips, as well as regular cover stories and multi-page investment focus features.
Follow Matthew on Twitter: @DrMatthewPartri
-
Older renters £2,000 worse-off than homeowners – the risks of renting in retirement
There are financial risks to renting in your golden years, research suggests
By Marc Shoffman
-
Waspi women targeted in fake compensation scam
The Waspi campaign has warned of a steep rise in fraudulent websites which claim compensation is available for 1950s-born women affected by state pension age changes
By Daniel Hilton
-
Supersonic travel: How China could 'leapfrog' US and Europe's commercial aviation industry
Opinion Innovation in commercial aviation has been stuck for 60 years. A commercial supersonic jet might be back on the market soon, but will China get there first?
By Matthew Lynn
-
How British businesses can tackle Trump's tariffs
The majority of British businesses are likely to take a hit from the chaos caused by Trump’s tariffs to reorder global trade. Companies in the firing line face some difficult decisions, says David Prosser
By David Prosser
-
Ben Cohen: The Ben & Jerry’s co-founder who wants to break away from Unilever
Ben Cohen of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream is seeking to break away from Unilever, the conglomerate he sold out to in 2000. It’s a battle for the soul of the brand synonymous with corporate do-gooding.
By Jane Lewis
-
Trump wants to colonise Mars – will it happen?
Donald Trump wants to plant the US flag on Mars. Could humans really live there?
By Simon Wilson
-
Anne Wojcicki: the 'daring' 23andMe CEO who reached too far
Profile Anne Wojcicki dreamed of a revolution in personal genomics and medicine and set up 23andMe in 2006. Its collapse into bankruptcy provides a cautionary tale
By Jane Lewis
-
Why are energy bills so expensive in the UK?
Electricity bills in the UK are higher than in any comparable rich country. Some blame the net-zero zealotry of the government for that. What is really to blame for high energy bills?
By Simon Wilson
-
Will Putin invade Europe? Why investors know Russia is a paper tiger
Opinion Markets are right to ignore talk of Putin invading Europe, says Max King.
By Max King
-
Why French far-right leader Marine Le Pen has been banned from running for office
Marine Le Pen, presidential candidate and leader of France's right-wing National Rally party, has been barred from standing by the country's judges.
By Emily Hohler