If you ever needed more evidence the 1% have it all, look no further than the newly built billionaires-only bank hidden away in the heart of London.
Located in a 120-year-old former mansion next to the Dorchester Hotel on London’s Park Lane, the vault is run by International Bank Vaults (IBV) and will only service the world’s elite.
“We won’t deal with millionaires,” says Sean Hoey, managing director of the facility in an interview with The Guardian.
“We will be dealing only with billionaires.”
The safety deposit boxes in the facility are the most expensive in the world, with dimensions of 5cm x 16cm x 49cm. In terms of pricing, it will set customers back £600 (AU$1,139) a year, which you could call pocket change for anyone in the ‘billionaire’ category. For perspective, though, a box twice the size at Harrods costs £465 (AU$883) and one at the Metro Bank just £240 (AU$455).
Those in need of a little more space will be provided the opportunity to hire an entire room for £2.5m a year (AU$4.75 million), with Hoey claiming, that they’ve “had a few enquiries about it.”
Of course, people with this type of money expect a little something extra with their safety deposit box. Which is why IBV will also chauffeur their customers to and from the bank in a Rolls-Royce.
On arrival customers are greeted by two doormen before going through a number of extensive security checks, including fingerprint and iris scans, before “white-gloved custodians” retrieve their goods. The vault is also protected by steel-lined walls, ceilings, and floors, deterring any potential thieves from tunnelling underneath.
Privacy is of the utmost importance, with Hoey claiming he has no idea what people store in their safety deposit boxes. That said, Hoey did work in a similar role at Harrods for 30 years and revealed that most people used their vault to store jewellery, artwork, gold bars and coins, watch collections, important documents, and family photos.
Anyone can apply for a box, but whether these applications are successful is another matter entirely. According to Hoey, clients will be well researched and vetted beforehand as to “maintain a certain calibre of clients.”
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