Coins and Canada - Bank of Nova Scotia's Chartered Banks Acquisitions Timeline

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Bank of Nova Scotia's Chartered Banks Acquisitions Timeline

By thecanadiannumismatist | Sunday, November 19, 2023

On December 31, 1831, a large group of Halifax businessmen met in the Merchants Exchange Coffee House to discuss the need to create a public bank as an alternative to the privately owned Halifax Banking Company. Three months later, on March 30, 1832, royal assent was given. The Bank of Nova Scotia became the first chartered bank in Nova Scotia and held their first shareholders' meeting at the Merchants Exchange Coffee House on May 10, 1832.

By 1889, The Bank of Nova Scotia's presence expanded southwards towards the Caribbean with the opening of a branch in Kingston, Jamaica, to facilitate the trading of sugar, rum and fish. It was the first branch of a Canadian bank to open outside the United States or United Kingdom.

By the early 1900s, a coast-to-coast branch network had been established, which continued to accelerate through amalgamations with other major Banks. In 1975, the Bank of Nova Scotia adopted Scotiabank as its worldwide brand name.

1883

The Bank of Nova Scotia acquired the Union Bank of Prince Edward Island, although most of the bank's expansion efforts in the century took the form of branch openings.

1913

In 1866, the Summerside Bank was absorbed by the Bank of New Brunswick in 1901. After Confederation in 1867, the four banks which had been established in New Brunswick began to struggle. The Bank of New Brunswick merged with the Bank of Nova Scotia (now Scotiabank) in 1913.

1914

Born in 1902, the Metropolitan Bank of Toronto merged with the Bank of Nova Scotia in 1914.

1919

After World War I the Bank of Ottawa reached a point where it required new capital and vigorous expansion to remain competitive and maintain its earnings. To achieve this, the bank amalgamated with the Bank of Nova Scotia in 1919.