Scotiabank

Bank of Nova Scotia
Scotiabank
Public company
Traded as TSX: BNS
NYSE: BNS
TTSE: SBTT
S&P/TSX 60 component
Industry Financial services
Founded 1832
Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
Headquarters Toronto, Ontario, Canada[1]
Key people
Brian J. Porter (President and CEO)
Sean McGuckin (CFO)
Revenue C$23.958 billion (2014)
Increase C$$7.298 billion (2014)
Total assets C$805.666 billion (2014)
Number of employees
86,932 (2014)
Website scotiabank.com

The Bank of Nova Scotia (French: Banque de la Nouvelle-Écosse), commonly known as Scotiabank (French: Banque Scotia), is the third largest bank in Canada by deposits and market capitalization. It serves more than 21 million customers in over 55 countries around the world and offers a range of products and services including personal and commercial banking, wealth management, corporate and investment banking. With assets of $791.8 billion, Scotiabank shares trade on the Toronto and New York Stock Exchanges.

The bank was incorporated by the Legislative Assembly of Nova Scotia on March 30, 1832, in Halifax, Nova Scotia, with William Lawson (1772–1848) serving as the first president[2] The bank moved its executive offices to Toronto, Ontario, in March 1900.[3][4] Scotiabank has billed itself as "Canada's most international bank" due to its acquisitions primarily in Latin America and the Caribbean, and also in Europe and India. It is a member of the London Bullion Market Association and one of four banks that participates in the London gold fixing.

BNS Institution Number (or bank number) is 002. The company ranked at number 41 on the SNL Financial World's 100 biggest banks listing, September 2013[5] and is under the leadership of President and CEO Brian J. Porter.

History and expansion

Joseph Howe Portrait, 1881 $5 Bill Bank of Nova Scotia

The 19th century

Scotiabank was founded in Halifax, Nova Scotia, in 1832 under the name of the Bank of Nova Scotia. The bank intended to facilitate the trans-Atlantic trade of the time.[6] Later, in 1883, Bank of Nova Scotia acquired The Union Bank of Prince Edward Island,[7] although most of the bank's expansion efforts in the century took the form of branch openings.

The bank launched its branch banking system by opening in Windsor, Nova Scotia. The expansion was limited to the Maritimes until 1882, when the bank moved west by opening a branch in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The Manitoba branch later closed but the bank continued to expand into the American Midwest. This included opening a branch in Minneapolis in 1885 which later transferred to Chicago in 1892. Following the collapse of the Commercial Bank of Newfoundland and Union Bank of Newfoundland on December 10, 1894; the Bank of Nova Scotia established on December 15, 1894, in Newfoundland,[2]

In 1899, the bank opened a branch in Boston, Massachusetts.

In the meantime, the bank opened a branch in Kingston, Jamaica, in 1889 to facilitate the trading of sugar, rum and fish. This was Scotiabank's first move into the Caribbean and historically the first branch of a Canadian bank opened outside of the United States or the United Kingdom.[6][7] By the end of the 19th century, the bank was represented in all of the Maritimes, Quebec, Ontario and Manitoba.

In 1900, the bank's headquarters were moved to Toronto, Ontario.[7]

The 20th and 21st century

View of a Scotiabank facade in Amherst, Nova Scotia. This structure was erected in 1907.
William D. Lawrence (ship) carved into the Bank of Nova Scotia Building (1931), Hollis Street, Halifax, Nova Scotia.

The bank continued to expand in the 20th century, although its growth now took the form of acquisitions rather than branch openings.

In its early expansion, the bank clearly followed trade and its customers' businesses rather than pursuing a strategy of expansion into international financial centres. Scotiabank is a member of the Global ATM Alliance, a joint venture of several major international banks that allows customers of the banks to use their ATM cards or check cards at certain other banks within the Global ATM Alliance without fees when traveling internationally. Other participating banks are Barclays (United Kingdom), Bank of America (United States), BNP Paribas (France and Ukraine through UkrSibbank), Deutsche Bank (Germany), and Westpac (Australia and New Zealand).[8]

The 21st century

One of the biggest challenges according to Scotia's CEO Rick Waugh is electronic espionage. It is thought that China and Russia engage in electronic spying, and scotia has devoted enormous resources in its effort to protect the privacy of its customers.

Scotia has also spent almost $100 million, implementing a controversial system to report to the United States the account holdings of close to one million Canadians of American origin, and their Canadian born spouses. Scotia has been forced implement this system in order to comply with FATCA. According to the Financial Post FATCA requires Canadian banks to provide information to the United States including total assets, account balances, account numbers, transactions and more, and includes assets held jointly with Canadian-born spouses and other family members.[9][10]

Portfolio evolution

Scotiabank traded under ticker BNS on TSX and NYSE.

Throughout the 20th century, the bank grew not only in size, but also in breadth of products and services. Progress was conditioned by changing consumer needs, legal changes, or acquisitions of external service providers. A short list follows:[7]

Mergers and acquisitions

The bank has amalgamated with several other Canadian financial institutions through the years, and purchased several other banks overseas:[4][11]

Bank Year established Year of amalgamation
Canada Union Bank of PEI
1860
1883
Canada Summerside Bank
1866
1901
Canada Bank of New Brunswick
1820
1913
Canada Metropolitan Bank of Canada
1902
1914
Canada The Bank of Ottawa
1874
1919
Canada Montreal Trust
1889
1994
Canada National Trust
1898
1997
Mexico Inverlat
1991
1992 Scotiabank buys 5% stake
Canada National Bank of Greece (Canada)
1982
2005
Peru Banco Wiesse Sudameris
1920
2006
Dominican Republic Banco Intercontinental
1986
2003
Peru Banco Sudamericano
1991
1997 Scotiabank acquires 25% of Peru's Banco Sudamericano
Canada E*TRADE Canada
1982
2008
Canada DundeeWealth
1998
2010
Puerto Rico R-G Premier Bank of Puerto Rico
1966
2010
Canada ING Direct Canada
1997
2012

Many former branches of Montreal Trust and National Trust were rebranded "Scotiabank & Trust", and continue to operate as such.

Controversies

David Berry $100M wrongful dismissal lawsuit

In June 2005, David Berry, a very successful Canadian Scotiabank trader who had built a $75M/year business in trading preferred shares was fired on the grounds that he had committed securities regulatory violations.[12]

At the time, as part of a 20% direct drive deal, he was making more than double the CEO's salary and Scotiabank management had already taken steps to limit his compensation.[13]

The regulatory violation allegations from his former employer, left him unemployable to Scotia's competitors despite the appeal of potentially adding more than $75M/year to their equity trading profits.[13]

Documents delivered to the media showing that Scotia management had sought advice on terminating Berry prior to the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC) violation accusation, and the results of questioning during the IIROC inquiries strongly suggest that the securities charges were part of a clever plan by Scotiabank senior management to remove Berry from his position and simultaneously prevent him from becoming their competitor.[14]

In a ruling on January 15, 2013, more than seven years after the initial accusation, a hearing panel of the IIROC dismissed all charges against Berry.[15][16]

David Berry has a filed a $100M wrongful dismissal lawsuit against Scotiabank. As of January 2015, and nine years after Berry was terminated, Scotia settled with Berry on an amount that cannot be disclosed. Barry Critchley, who has been following the story since inception, published an article on November 6, 2014 in which he believes Scotia's $55 million reported legal charges would likely be connected to the $100 million lawsuit; but it's unlikely to be ever found out. [17]

Unpaid overtime lawsuit

In 2014 a settlement deal in a class-action lawsuit was reached . The agreement would cover thousands of workers for more than a decade of unpaid overtime.The lawsuit included 16,000 Scotiabank employees across Canada who worked as personal banking officers, senior personal banking officers, financial advisors, and small business account managers from January 1, 2000 to December 1, 2013. The lawsuit was filed in 2007, along with a similar class-action filed by CIBC bank teller Dara Fresco of Toronto. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce said previously that it intends to go to trial.

Employees would receive 1.5 times their standard wage at the time, but no interest. Scotiabank will also pay legal fees of $10.45 million in the case. Plaintiffs' counsels were David O'Connor of Roy O'Connor and Louis Sokolov of Sotos LLP.[18][19]

Fraud in Mexico

In 2001, $14 million was discovered missing in from one of Scotia's branches in Mexico during an investigation into the murder of a branch manager, Maru Oropesa. Initially, the investigators found that Oropesa and Jaime Ross, her former boss, had illegally transferred $5 million from client investment accounts. The money was eventually transferred to the United States where it was used to purchase three aircraft. As the investigation continued, a total of $14 million was found missing and 16 other bank employees were involved in the fraud.[20] [21] Ross was convicted of fraud and money laundering for his role and sentenced to 15 years.[22] The other 16 bank employees were fired by Scotiabank but were not prosecuted.[20]

Operating units

Scotia Plaza, Scotiabank World Headquarters in Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Scotiabank has four business lines: [23]

As of 2013, Scotiabank services more than 21 million customers and has over $791.8 billion in assets. The bank employs more than 83,000 employees throughout the world, partly in Europe, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean. Scotiabank is Canada's most international bank with 3,321 branches and offices in over 55 countries.

Corporate sponsorship and branding

Sports

Culture

Corporate Social Responsibility

The Scotiabank Bright Future program is the bank's global philanthropic vision. The bank's multinational reach has provided a unique opportunity to help people around the world through corporate giving and employee-volunteer programs that span across six pillars: education, health care, social services, arts and culture, sports and environment.

In 2013, the bank contributed $62 million in donations and sponsorships to community causes around the world. Scotiabank's employees spent 424,000 hours in 2013 volunteering and fundraising through formal community programs.

Scotiabank's corporate social responsibility EcoLiving program, encourages and facilitates environmentally preferable construction and renovation of homes. The company also has internal programs related to environmental responsibility and ethical financial and lending practices.[30]

Recent events

Scotiabank has a strong presence in Thailand through its 48.99% owned affiliate, Thanachart Bank. With the recent acquisition of Siam City Bank, Thanachart Bank is now the 6th largest bank (by assets) in Thailand with over 16,000 staff serving more than four million customers through 680 branches and 2,100 ATMs across the country.[35]

Awards

Unionization

Scotiabank has unionized relationships with employees in a number of locations around the world.[41] In Canada, the sole unionized workplace is the domestic banking branch in Deep River, Ontario.

Credit agency ratings

Senior Debt Credit Ratings (May, 2014)
Agency Rating
DBRS AA Stable
Fitch AA- Stable
Moody's Aa2 Stable
Standard & Poor's A+ Stable

Membership

BNS is a member of the Canadian Bankers Association (CBA) and registered member with the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation (CDIC), a federal agency insuring deposits at all of Canada's chartered banks. It is also a member of:

Gallery

Branch and office locations

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Scotiabank.

Canada

International

Sources

Bank of Nova Scotia. 1932. The Bank of Nova Scotia, 1832–1932. Halifax: Bank of Nova Scotia.

The Scotiabank Story: A History of the Bank of Nova Scotia, 1832–1982. by Joseph Schull

See also

References

  1. "Mail Us". Scotiabank. Retrieved December 4, 2010.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Pound, Richard W. (2005). Fitzhenry and Whiteside Book of Canadian Facts and Dates. Fitzhenry and Whiteside. ISBN 978-1554550098.
  3. Toronto Star, May 3, 1904 p. 12.
  4. 1 2 "The Scotiabank Story". Scotiabank.com. 2010. Retrieved 2013-10-13.
  5. "Largest 100 banks in the world". SNL. Retrieved 2014-04-30.
  6. 1 2 Scotiabank.com – The Scotiabank Story accessed on July 23, 2008
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 The Bank of Nova Scotia – Company History, accessed on July 13, 2011.
  8. "Scotiabank – Global ATM Alliance", scotiabank.com. Accessed May 5, 2010.
  9. http://business.financialpost.com/2013/10/23/electronic-spying-a-big-issue-for-banks-scotia-ceo-waugh-says/
  10. http://opinion.financialpost.com/2013/09/17/dual-canadian-american-citizens-we-are-not-tax-cheats/
  11. Deborah C. Sawyer. "Bank of Nova Scotia Canadian Encyclopedia". Thecanadianencyclopedia.com. Retrieved March 10, 2011.
  12. "In defence of David Berry". The National Post. 13 July 2005.
  13. 1 2 "The Trader's Revenge". Toronto Life. 26 May 2008.
  14. "Scotiabank explored fallout of cutting star trader's $15M pay months before he was fired, documents suggest". Financial Post. 19 Oct 2012.
  15. "IN THE MATTER OF David Berry – Discipline Decision" (PDF). Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada. 17 Jan 2013.
  16. "Former top Scotiabank trader cleared of allegations that led to his $100M wrongful dismissal lawsuit". Financial Post. 16 Jan 2013.
  17. "Could Scotiabank's $55-million legal charge be linked to dismissed trader Dave Berry's lawsuit?". Financial Post. 6 Nov 2013.
  18. "Ontario court approves settlement deal for unpaid overtime at Scotiabank". Toronto Star. 12 Aug 2014.
  19. "Scotiabank agrees to settle in overtime lawsuit". CTV News. 24 July 2014.
  20. 1 2 Culbert,Andrew (October 18, 2013). "The Murder and the Money Trail". Retrieved August 18, 2015.
  21. Sisler, Julia (October 19, 2013). "Scotiabank manager’s death probe reveals multimillion-dollar fraud". Retrieved August 18, 2015.
  22. Stewart, Art (November 11, 2013). "Murder of Bank Manager Tied to Fraud". Retrieved August 18, 2015.
  23. "Corporate Profile | Scotiabank". Scotiabank. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  24. "Canada Running Series". Canada Running Series. Retrieved March 10, 2011.
  25. "Official Bank of the NHL and NHLPA". Scotiabank. Retrieved March 10, 2011.
  26. "Article 46(2) of the Collective Labour Agreement acknowledges that there will be strikes". Stabroek News. January 6, 2010. Retrieved March 10, 2011.
  27. "Industry Partnerships". University of Waterloo. Retrieved 24 April 2014.
  28. "SCENE website". Scene.ca. Retrieved March 10, 2011.
  29. Scotiabank Caribana Partnership Extension
  30. "Corporate Responsibility | Scotiabank". Scotiabank. Retrieved 20 November 2012.
  31. Pasternak, Sean (October 20, 2011). "Scotiabank Buys Colpatria in Biggest International Purchase". Bloomberg Markets. Retrieved October 22, 2011.
  32. "Scotiabank to buy ING Bank of Canada for $3.13 billion in cash". The Canadian Press.
  33. "ING completes sale of ING Direct Canada". Reuters. November 15, 2012.
  34. "Scotiabank expands in Central America". Scotiaban press release. July 14, 2015.
  35. "Bank's Profile". Thanachart Bank. Retrieved 1 January 2016.
  36. "Advocate". Barbadosadvocate.com. Retrieved March 10, 2011.
  37. "Global Finance names the 2011 World's Best Emerging Market Banks in Latin America". gfmag.com. Retrieved 2014-01-03.
  38. "The Banker Awards 2012 - Global and regional winners". TheBanker.com. Retrieved 2013-07-08.
  39. "Scotiabank Named Bank of the Year in Canada and Multiple Countries by The Banker Magazine". wsj.com. November 29, 2013. Retrieved 2014-01-03.
  40. "World's Best Emerging Markets Banks in Latin America 2014". gfmag.com. Retrieved 2014-04-30.
  41. "T43536-CSR05_1-10" (PDF). Retrieved March 10, 2011.
  42. "fastforward.tt". fastforward.tt. Retrieved March 10, 2011.
  43. http://www.multilinkdebit.com/

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Scotiabank.
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