Yaqub ben Ezra
Description
An elderly Jewish sarraf in the bankers’ lane of Alexandria, seated behind a low table heaped with coin and a set of brass scales. Quiet, courteous, precise. He weighs every coin, bites the doubtful ones, tests for clipping, and takes his commission with an apologetic shrug.
Background
A money-changer of long standing in a trade that, in Ottoman Egypt, runs largely through Jewish and Syrian Christian houses. Turns travellers’ letters of credit into hard coin — Spanish silver dollars and Maria Theresa thalers (trusted everywhere east) plus small Egyptian para and piastres for daily bakshish. His word and his scales are his reputation.
Motivations
- A fair commission and an unblemished name. He will not cheat a customer who treats him with respect.
- Information is a banker’s second currency; he keeps a quiet web of news across the harbour and the lanes.
Connections
- Reached via Yusuf, Madame Rosa, or the British agent. See Session 03 Alexandria.
- Can vouch for an honest boatman — a soft lead toward Reis Ibrahim for the Nile leg.
Appearances
Session 4 Developments
Yusuf led the party’s men — Freddy, Thomas, Nathaniel Holt, and Adrien — to Yaqub in the banker’s lane, where he weighed and bit every coin before taking his commission with his customary apologetic shrug. Holt, however, deduced that Yusuf himself was skimming a quiet 2% commission on top of every transaction Yaqub processed — and that the Bank of England’s Alexandria branch was quite literally around the corner. Holt and Adrien bypassed the arrangement entirely and took their business to the bank instead, where the clerk Wetherall handled Holt’s Navy pay advance directly. Freddy, by contrast, went ahead and exchanged his money with Yaqub as planned, fronting Thomas some cash in the process — so Yaqub’s business with the party was only partially diverted, not lost outright. Source: _inbox/session-Jul 2nd, 2026.md (Banking and Errands in Alexandria); Chapters/Chapter 4 - Calcutta/Sessions/Session 04/Session_04_Table_Assistant_Notes.md (“The Bank Trip,” “Correction — trading on bank paper” — met in play, promote DRAFT → AUTHORITATIVE at wrap-up).
Relationships
- Vouches-for Reis Ibrahim al Rashidi — Keeps a banker's web of news; can vouch for honest boatmen on the river