Bank of Scotland

The Bank of Scotland plc (Scottish Gaelic: ''Banca na h-Alba'') is a commercial and clearing bank based in Edinburgh, Scotland, and is part of the Lloyds Banking Group. The bank was established by the Parliament of Scotland in 1695 to develop Scotland's trade with other countries, and aimed to create a stable banking system in the Kingdom of Scotland.

With a history dating to the end of the 17th century, the Bank of Scotland was the first bank to have been established in Scotland, and, it is the fifth-oldest extant bank in the United Kingdom (the Bank of England having been established one year earlier). It is the only commercial institution created by the Parliament of Scotland, when Scotland was an independent, sovereign state, to remain in existence. It was the first bank in Europe to successfully print its own banknotes, and it continues to print its own sterling banknotes under legal arrangements that allow Scottish banks to issue currency.

In June 2006, the HBOS Group Reorganisation Act 2006 was passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom, allowing the bank's structure to be simplified. As a result, ''The Governor and Company of the Bank of Scotland'' became Bank of Scotland plc on 17 September 2007. Bank of Scotland has been a subsidiary of Lloyds Banking Group since 19 January 2009, when HBOS was acquired by Lloyds TSB. Provided by Wikipedia