C Hoare & Co, that ever-so-discreet banker to the gentry for the last 300 or so years, invariably shuns any publicity.

Only very, very occasionally does the bank allow oiks from the media to peep into the sanctums of its offices in Ye Olde Fleete Streete.

So somewhat surprisingly, Alexander Hoare and colleagues have just been speaking to the frightful Americans, of all people, in the shape of Bloomberg. Of course, Mr Alex gave Bloomies little real info, like the number of clients, core profitability and so on.

But the colonials were fed plenty of colour from the bank’s huge historical archives, dating ...