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The economic activity of the Jews in the Romanian territories reflect in many ways the geography and history of the community. From the beginning of their settlement in Wallachia and Moldova, Jews concentrated on crafts, trade and finance, thus filling an empty space in the principalities, which were basically agrarian.
These professions corresponded to the occupations that the settlers had previously held in their countries of origin, and enabled them to deal with them everywhere and in any social environment, while still preserving their Jewish culture and heritage.
This trend changed during the second half of the 19th century due to the accelerated modernization of Romanian society. The Jews influenced these processes of modernization, and there was a close connection between economic developments in Romanian society and those in the Jewish society. The integration of the Jews into the Romanian economy influenced, among other things, their dispersa into communities where they had not previously lived. Thus, the presence of Jews in certain areas of Romania indicated the economic development of those areas. It is no coincidence that the large concentrations of the Jews were in economically developed cities, such as the capital, Bucharest, and in port cities such as Galați and Brăila.
Despite economic persecution and employment restrictions imposed upon them, Jews had great influence in the professions in which they worked. Jewish bankers, industrialists and entrepreneurs attained impressive achievements. Economic activity created many points of convergence between,the,two peoples, but on the other hand also caused tension. Romania's modernization process did not pass over the Jewish society, and was reflected in the secularization of some community institutions and the establishment of a modern education system.
If in their professional lives Jews lived in both worlds, their own communities were created as a bulwark against external menaces: to defend the existence of the community, to promote its wellbeing, and to assist its members. The Jewish community was perceived as an organization whose members have shared interests, similar to other associations in Romania, such as guilds, which represented minorities and various trade unions. Similarly, the community was the entity which offered financial assistance to the needy and education to all of its members through a chains of schools.
Community affiliation was determined, then, as today, by the city of residence, even when there were separate religious communities within a city. The Jewish community thus functioned as its own city within a city, and this internal autonomy enabled it to preserve its unique social, religious and cultural traditions.
