The history of Mizuho Financial Group (Mizuho) dates back to 1873 with the establishment of the Dai-ichi Bank, the first national bank in Japan. Mizuho itself was formed in 2000 from the merger of three of Japan’s largest and most established banks, the Dai-Ichi Kangyo Bank (DKB), Fuji Bank and the Industrial Bank of Japan (‘IBJ’). The diverse activities have now been integrated under ‘One Mizuho’ to create a global powerhouse. The history informs our present thinking, which values mutually beneficial long-term relationships and steady and sustainable growth. We recognize that in order to service our global client base, we need to continue to expand our presence in the world’s major markets. Our strategy is simple. EMEA is a key part of the bank’s global ambitions. We have been an active participant in the European market since 1952 and have continued to grow our presence ever since, with a network of 20 offices spread throughout the region. Having the balance sheet and credit rating…
SMBC was formed by the merger of The Sumitomo Bank and Sakura Bank in April 2001. Sumitomo Bank was a major Japanese bank founded in 1895; Sakura Bank was a descendant of Mitsui Bank, another major Japanese bank founded in 1876, but with operations dating back to 1683, when the Tokugawa Shogunate granted Mitsui Takatoshi permission to act as a money changer.
In April 2001, Sakura Bank and Sumitomo Bank merge to form Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation. (Capital stock: ¥1,276,7 billion). Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) establishes a holding company named Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, Inc. (SMFG) through a share transfer, SMBC becomes a wholly owned subsidiary of SMFG in December 2002 and witnessed Wakashio Bank (established June 1996) merge with SMBC in the end of 1st quarter next year.
On July 2008, Sumitomo Mitsui buys a 2.1 per cent stake in Barclays Bank for £500m. In the beginning of 2nd quarter, a group of criminal hackers including Hugh Rodley, security insider…
Mitsubishi Bank was founded in 1880 by a former samurai, Iwasaki Yatarō, and was a core member of the Mitsubishi Group of companies. It merged with The Bank of Tokyo in 1996 to form The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi, Ltd., which at that point was the world's largest bank in terms of total assets. In 1998, upon merger of the then second and third largest Swiss banks, Union Bank of Switzerland and Swiss Bank Corporation, the newly created UBS AG became the second largest in the world at the time, behind only the Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi. The Bank of Tokyo had historically focused on foreign exchange business since its foundation as the Yokohama Specie Bank in 1880, while Mitsubishi had had a stronger focus on domestic corporate and retail banking. Both banks were relatively healthy in the wake of the Japanese asset price bubble. Until the Tokyo-Mitsubishi merger took place in 1996, Sanwa Bank, which was based in Osaka and was the anchor of the Sanwa Group keiretsu, had been considered the…
Doha Bank is one of the largest commercial banks in the State of Qatar. It was incorporated in 1978 and commenced its domestic and international banking services in Doha, Qatar on March 15, 1979. Doha Bank provides domestic and international banking services for individuals, commercial, corporate and institutional clients through four business groups – Wholesale Banking, Retail Banking, International Banking and Treasury & Investments. Doha Bank has established overseas branches in Kuwait, Dubai (UAE), Abu Dhabi (UAE), Mumbai and Kochi (India) as well as representative offices in Japan, China, Singapore, Hong Kong, South Africa, South Korea, Australia, Turkey, the United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, Bangladesh and Sharjah (UAE). As one of Qatar’s leading financial services company, Doha Bank is committed to making banking work for customers and clients like it never has before. Through innovative technologies and the ingenuity of its people, Doha Bank provides individuals and commercial…
Sberbank's history goes back to Cancrin's financial reform of 1841, when a network of the first state-owned savings banks was created in Russia. By the end of the 19th century, the network reached almost 4 thousand outlets with over 2 million depositors. Since 1905, savings bank outlets became authorized to sell insurance. After 1910, savings banks started subsidizing credit cooperation institutions and extending loans to small lenders. In 1915, savings bank outlets started accepting government securities for depositing.
In post-Soviet Russia, Sberbank is the largest universal bank despite growing competition from private and other state-owned commercial banks. The bank has gradually expanded its international presence. Since 2007, Sberbank is led by former economy minister Herman Gref.
Presently, Sberbank is a state-owned Russian banking and financial services company headquartered in Moscow. The company was known as "Sberbank of Russia" until 2015. Sberbank has operations in…
On August 6, 1935, businessman Wee Kheng Chiang, together with six other friends, established the bank after raising S$1 million. The bank was named United Chinese Bank (UCB) to emphasize its links to the Chinese population in Singapore. On October 1935, UCB opened for business in the three story Bonham Building. In 1965, the bank was renamed to United Overseas Bank and opened its first overseas branch in Hong Kong. In 1970, UOB was listed on the Joint Stock Exchange of Singapore and Malaysia, at that time which Singapore did not have its own stock exchange. After it was publicly listed, the bank went through a series of targeted acquisitions. The bank first acquired Chung Khiaw Bank in 1971, which expanded its domestic presence and also gave the bank offices in Malaysia and Hong Kong. In 1973, UOB then acquired Lee Wah Bank, which provided services in Malaysia and Singapore. In that same year, the bank built a new 30 storey office tower in place of the Bonham Building, which was named…
The FirstRand Group's history traces back to the 1970s as an investment bank. The Group as currently is was established on April 1, 1998, through a merger of the financial services interests of Anglo American Corporation of South Africa Limited (now Anglo American plc) and RMB Holdings (RMBH) in order to achieve the objective of a unified financial services grouping. These financial services interests were First National Bank Holdings ("FNB"), Momentum Life Assurers Limited ("Momentum" now part of MMI Holdings) and the Southern Life Association Limited ("Southern Life") all of which were listed on the JSE. FNB and Southern Life were delisted from the JSE and constituted as wholly owned subsidiaries of Momentum which was the vehicle to effect the merger. Momentum changed its name to FirstRand Limited and was listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange on May 25, 1998 with Anglo American and RMB Holdings holding 20.43% and 25.03% of the authorized capital of FirstRand respectively. Anglo…
Shinhan Bank is the descendant of Hanseong Bank, the first modern bank in Korea. It was established by Kim Jong-Han in 1897, but began operating around 1900. It was originally located in a small house with only two rooms. One room was for the president, Yi Jae-Won, and the other room was for the staff. The bank operated by borrowing money from Japanese banks at low interest rates and then loaning it out for twice the rate to the Korean market. The Bank was successful because despite lending out money at twice the rate it borrowed it at, the bank's interest rates were still far lower than what could be obtained elsewhere in Korea at that time. In an anecdotal story the bank's first property to use as collateral on a loan happened to be a donkey. The bank staff were challenged to feed and care for their collateral as the loan was out.
Today, Shinhan Bank is headquartered in Seoul, South Korea. Historically it was the first bank in Korea, established under the name Hanseong Bank in…
Woori Bank, headquartered in Seoul, is the second bank from South Korea to enter Indian market. Sinhan Bank, a part of Sinhan Financial Group, has set up its first branch in Mumbai in 1996, and has two more branches, one in New Delhi and another one in Vellore district, Tamil Nadu.
Woori Bank is a subsidiary of the parent company Woori Financial Group. The bank was founded back in 1899, originally called Daehan Cheon-il Bank, renamed Joseon Sangup Bank in 1911, then Commercial Bank of Korea in 1950s. Following the 1997 Asian financial crisis, it merged with the former Hanil Bank and Peace Bank to become Hanvit Bank. Woori Bank adopted its current name in 2002. Woori Bank has served the Seoul Metropolitan Government for over 100 years and is the primary banking partner of 70 percent of Korea's public institutions. Its Jongno branch is located in the Gwangtonggwan, the oldest continuously-operating bank building in Korea. It was registered as one of city's protected monuments on March…
Bank of Ceylon (BoC) was founded in 1939, with Sir Ernest de Silva as its first chairman. At the time, Ceylon was a British colony and the then governor Sir Andrew Caldecott ceremoniously opened the bank on 1 August. The English government introduced the banking arm for its government-oriented businesses. Two years later, in 1941, BoC started to expand beyond the city of Colombo. It opened its first branch in Kandy. Subsequently BoC added branches in major cities such as Galle, Jaffna, Kurunegala, Batticaloa, Trincomalee, Badulla, and Panadura.
The saga of Bank of Ceylon (BOC) began on 1st of August 1939 under Bank of Ceylon Ordinance No. 53 of 1938, the Governor of Ceylon, Sir Andrew Caldecott, declared open the maiden office of Sri Lanka’s first state-owned commercial bank in Fort, Colombo. BOC is a licensed commercial bank established under the Banking Act No. 30 of 1988. As Bankers to the Nation, BOC reached out to all citizens of the country through its largest network over 627…