Bank of Ireland

The company acquires the National Land Bank and renames it National City Bank, Ltd. The company acquires Irish interests of National Bank, Ltd. and renames it National Bank of Ireland. The company acquires the British building society Bristol & West and New Ireland Assurance, a life insurance company. Bank of Ireland introduces Fsharp, an online banking service for customers living and working abroad. The Bank of Ireland is the oldest bank in Ireland. Throughout the turbulent Irish history, the bank has demonstrated remarkable entrepreneurship by taking innovative risks and making them work--from opening a commercial branch in a tiny agricultural community in the 18th century to offering remote offshore banking over the Internet in the 21st century. Their corporate agility and strength has earned them the nickname "the Celtic Tiger" and established them as leaders in the international banking industry and global economy. The Bank of Ireland opened for business on June 25, 1783, in Dublin, a day that marked a turning point in the financial history of Ireland. Until that point, banking had been handled by private institutions and individuals. The economy had been unstable and money scarce: a combination that devastated many small banks trying to establish themselves. One bank that survived was David La Touche and Son. The founder's grandson, also David La Touche, was elected the first Governor of the Bank of Ireland. Several members of the wealthy La Touche family were the bank's first clients and opened large accounts. Ireland was under British rule, and La Touche was a member of the Irish Parliament. His position helped the Bank of Ireland become appointed as the Official Government Bank. It became their duty to handle all funds coming into or going out of the Treasury Department. Being the Official Government Bank gave the Bank of Ireland an economic edge over its competitors and helped create an image of security. This was important because the public had not forgotten the banking disasters of the earlier decades. The economy was bad and the majority of people were poor. The small group that did have money, mainly landowners, was very protective of their money and skeptical of banks. The promise of security helped attract some of this public sector. Checkbooks were issued from the bank's beginning; and in 1796, the bank issued personal passbooks to customers. Although the bank's main focus was securing larger commercial accounts, the number of private individual accounts was growing. The bank quickly outgrew its Mary's Abbey location and purchased several small adjoining properties in 1790. It soon outgrew this expansion as well and purchased the Parliament House in College Green in 1803. The Parliament House Building had been vacated when the Irish Parliament was abolished according to the Act of the Union in 1801. This act declared Ireland part of "The United Kingdom of Great Britain." The Irish would no longer have their own Parliament; instead, they would have a member represent them in the English Parliament. The architect Francis Johnson was hired to remodel the building in a manner that would suit banking needs. The result was a very impressive and prestigious headquarters. Ireland was a country of agriculture. The majority of its people were farmers living in the outskirts and rural areas of the country; and there were no banks in these outlying areas. In 1825, the Bank of Ireland opened seven branch offices for these customers. The new branches, referred to as "agencies," opened in Cork, Waterford, Clonmel, Newry, Belfast, Londonberry, and Westport. Banking was a new approach to money handling for most of these people, and they were apprehensive. But they eventually recognized the value and convenience, and by 1881, the Bank of Ireland had 58 branches in operation. The beginning of the 20th century was a period of political turbulence. Ireland was still under English rule. Southern Ireland was fighting agai