Loan of Hanko railway company

Branch lines, which were usually established by city-managed limited companies, were large projects in terms of their initial expenses, which is why the government supported them directly through subsidies and long-term loans. A form of indirect support was to authorise companies to issue bond credit. The photo features a loan issued in 1872 by the Hanko railway company (Hangö Jernvägs Aktiebolabet), which was a company established by investors from Saint Petersburg.

The railway line between Hanko and Hyvinkää was Finland’s first railway link to be constructed using private funds. It was completed in 1873, but the operations immediately turned out to be financially unprofitable. The Hanko railway company ended up in the ownership of the Finnish government in 1875.