By the early twentieth century, competition in the international transport markets had become fierce. It was particularly intense in the passenger business, with British and German companies vying with each other for supremacy on the North American routes. Germany was also competing strongly with the British in the Mediterranean. The bedrock of German liner shipping was the immigrant trade to North America, its hallmark being the high quality of the services provided, which gave the Germans a great advantage over their British competitors. While the transport of immigrants emerged as the focal point of Anglo-German shipping competition, it also enabled the Germans to penetrate the international sea transport industries.

In 1907 a Greek passenger company attempted to connect the Eastern Mediterranean to New York, the first “formal” attempt by Greek shipowners to enter this highly competitive segment of transoceanic shipping. It was a “great leap forward” for the Greek shipping industry, because it marked the departure of Greek passenger steamers from narrow national boundaries to the open waters of the international sea lanes. This shift was undertaken by the greatest Greek shipowner of his time, Demetrios Moraitis, an entrepreneur who had made his money in tramp trades and bulk cargoes — the classic Greek pattern — a decade before he diversified into the passenger field. This paper is concerned with Moraitis' efforts to emulate his North European counterparts by establishing the Transoceanic Greek Steam Navigation Company, focussing on the “new“ fund raising techniques he deployed to launch this pioneering transatlantic venture.

Demetrios Moraitis and the Greek Shipping Industry, 1880-1900

Greek shipping was ready for expansion by 1900. The process of readjusting the mercantile fleet to the new technology of steam had been underway for the last twenty years. Greek tramp steamers, although bought second-hand from Britain, had cornered a large proportion of Mediterranean trade, especially in bulk cargoes. Wheat grown in the coastal regions of the Danube delta and southern Russia, and then exported from the Black Sea not only made Greek shipowners wealthy, but also provided the foundation stone for the development of Greek steam shipping. It was here that Greek shipping capital was generated and here that a new breed of Greek shipowner emerged.