Bank of British Columbia

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

There have been two Canadian banks with the name Bank of British Columbia.

The first was established with a Royal Charter in 1862 and merged with the Canadian Bank of Commerce in 1901. For a number of years it had a branch in San Francisco.

The second was the 1970s creation of W.A.C. Bennett, the Premier of the Province of British Columbia. Bennett, a businessman, wanted to put an end to Central Canada's absolute control over the banking industry that required all but small loans to British Columbia companies to be authorized by the Head Offices in Montreal or Toronto. Financed by the government, in 1978, Bennett distributed the shares free amongst all citizens of the province.

Following financial difficulties from poor management, notably by the flamboyant American Edgar F. Kaiser, Jr., in 1986 the Canadian government permitted Hong Kong Bank of Canada to rescue it. By stepping in, HBC acquired $2.6 billion CAD in assets, a large base of stable retail deposits, and 41 branches in British Columbia and Alberta. The acquisition immediately jumped HBC's rank among Canadian banks from 20th to 9th largest.