Erich Elias

From 1908 on, Eich Elias worked in Frankfurt am Main, London and Paris in trade and banking. From 1915 to 1918 he took part in the First World War a telegrapher.^[1] In 1919 he returned to banking and in 1921 became a Teilhaber at the bank Michael Frank und Söhne. He worked in Amsterdam for six months for this company. In 1927-'28 he worked in banking in Luxembourg. During the years of the economic crisis, the bank ran into difficulties and Erich Elias decided to move to Basel in 1929 to set up a branch of the Pomosin/Opekta-Werke.^[2] In 1931, his wife followed with their two sons.

On 16 February 1921 Erich Elias had married Helene (Leni) Frank in Frankfurt am Main.^[3] She was a sister of Otto Frank, and was therefore an uncle by marriage of Anne and Margot.^[4] Erich and Leni had two sons, Stephan (1921-1980) and Bernd (Buddy) (1925-2015).

From 1931 to the beginning of 1939 he was manager of Opekta A.G., Pektin A.G., Omon A.G. and Rohstoff-Verkehrs A.G. In 1939-'40 he was active in his own pectin business and after an intermezzo with an oil trader, he joined Unipektin A.G. in October 1940.^[5]

During the war years, Erich Elias corresponded about business matters with Johannes Kleiman, who — between the lines — told him something about Otto Frank and his family.^[6] In the summer of 1945, Otto Frank made plans with Erich Elias to re-enter the Dutch pectin market.^[7]

Although Elias had lived in Basel, Switzerland since 1929, he spent years trying to acquire Swiss citizenship. It was not until 1952 that it was granted.^[8]

Source personal data.^[9] Addresses: Gundeldingerstrasse 139, Basel.^[10]