The bank's charter was approved by
Alexander II on . The bank's fixed capital was initially determined at 5 million rubles and was distributed into 20 thousand shares of 250 rubles each. It was initially backed by German investors, especially the
Berlin-based
Disconto-Gesellschaft. In 1896, the International Commercial Bank became the largest shareholder of the newly established
Russo-Chinese Bank, with 15.3 percent of the initial capital. It had close links with Russia's military-industrial complex and controlled over 50 companies in 1914, including rail carriers, industrial enterprises, and insurance companies. The latter property was expanded in 1912 with an additional building facing Ekaterininskaya Street. File:Петроградский международный коммерческий банк, 1915.jpg|The bank's head office Saint Petersburg head office in 1915 File:Moscow Ilyinka9str1 I13.jpg| in
Moscow, Ilyinka 9 File:BankBuilding (Kharkiv).jpg|Former building in
Kharkiv, Constitution Square 22 ==See also==