Our History






1820s

1821
Alexander Guthrie established Guthrie & Co in Singapore as one of the first British trading houses in South East Asia.
1840s

1844
Daniel and Smith Harrison and Joseph Crosfield formed a tea and coffee trading partnership called Harrisons & Crosfield in Liverpool, England.
1860s

1860
Harrisons & Crosfield becomes the third largest tea trader with sales of between 2.5 and 2.75 million lbs.

1867
Guthrie & Co diversifies into the insurance and banking industry and invests in steamship companies.
1890s

1895
Harrisons & Crosfield establishes the first eastern branch, Lampard, Crosfield & Co, in Colombo, Ceylon (Sri Lanka), marking their entry into the plantation ownership business.

1896
Guthrie & Co accepted agencies for coffee estates in Selangor and Negeri Sembilan which were experimentally planted with rubber.