Hugo Wiederkehr, as a dutiful bank employee, has to deal with all kinds of customers. Among other things, with the industrialist Meissen and his pretty daughter Christine, with whom he falls in love. However, it remains unmatched because it belongs to a different social class. He also works as a hobbyist and inventor, which also requires a lot of money. When his employer refuses to give him a loan because his father is in prison for fraud, he quits disappointed.

Yvette is the daughter of a courtesan who serves men of wealth and status. She is unaware of how her mother makes money and why they are always in the presence of princes, dukes and barons. Only when Yvette goes away on a holiday she realizes that the Banker Saval is engaging her mother in such activities, she suddenly feels dirty.