Clydesdale Bank plc facts for kids
The former headquarters of Clydesdale Bank in St Vincent Place, Glasgow
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| Subsidiary | |
| Industry | Banking, financial services |
| Founded | 1838 |
| Headquarters | Glasgow, Scotland, UK |
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Key people
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James Pettigrew (Chairman) David Duffy (Chief Executive Officer) |
| Services | Retail banking SME banking |
| Revenue | £ 1.004 billion (2015) |
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Operating income
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 £(308) million (2015) |
| £(249) million (2015) |
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| Total assets | £ 38.7 billion (2015) |
| Total equity | Unknown |
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Number of employees
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c. 8,703 (2018) |
| Parent | Virgin Money UK plc |
| Divisions | B |
| Subsidiaries |
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Clydesdale Bank is a bank from Scotland. It started in Glasgow, Scotland, in 1838. Today, it is part of Virgin Money.
Over the years, Clydesdale Bank grew a lot. It worked with many businesses and needed more money to help them. Because of this, a bigger bank called Midland Bank bought it in 1920. Later, from 1987 to 2016, Clydesdale Bank was part of the National Australia Bank Group.
In 2016, Clydesdale Bank became independent again. Its new main company was called CYBG plc. In 2018, CYBG bought Virgin Money. Now, all the banks under CYBG are changing their name to Virgin Money. This includes Clydesdale Bank.
The main office for Virgin Money UK plc is in Glasgow. It is the sixth largest bank in the United Kingdom. Like two other Scottish banks, Clydesdale Bank can print its own banknotes.
Contents
History of Clydesdale Bank
How the Bank Started
In March 1838, an advertisement appeared in Glasgow for a new bank. It was called the Clydesdale Banking Company. The idea was for it to be a local bank with only a few branches. However, it would have connections everywhere. It also needed a branch in Edinburgh.
The bank opened for business in both Glasgow and Edinburgh in May 1838. It was created by a group of Glasgow business people. They were known for being active in the city's government and charities.
The main person behind the bank was James Lumsden. He was a stationer and later became the Lord Provost of Glasgow. Another founder, Henry Brock, became the bank's first manager. He was an accountant and helped start the Glasgow Savings Bank.
Even though the ad said few branches, the bank quickly opened more. In its first year, it opened three branches in Glasgow. It also opened its first country branches in Campbeltown and Falkirk. By 1844, seven more branches had opened. The bank also bought the Greenock Union Bank, which had four branches.
Growing Bigger
After buying the Greenock Union Bank, Clydesdale Bank did not change much for a while. In 1857, it had only 13 branches. That year, Clydesdale was the first Scottish bank to show its financial report to the public. It had £2.7 million in assets and £70,000 in profits.
This public report helped the bank. A few months later, two other banks, the Western Bank of Scotland and the City of Glasgow Bank, closed down. Clydesdale Bank gained many new customers and 13 branches from the Western Bank.
A few months later, Clydesdale Bank took over the Edinburgh and Glasgow Bank. This bank had become weak due to money problems. It had started in 1838 to help "industrious middle classes." It had also bought other banks before joining Clydesdale. Clydesdale kept 19 of its 27 offices.
Five years later, in 1863, Clydesdale bought the Eastern Bank of Scotland. This bank also started in 1838 and was based in Dundee. This purchase gave Clydesdale its first branches north of the River Tay.
Most of the bank's growth came from buying other banks. The management was careful about opening new branches on their own. However, in 1865, a group was formed to look at new locations. They opened 16 branches in just two years.
In 1874, Clydesdale Bank opened three branches in Cumberland, England. This was to help existing customers who traded there. It was not a big move into the English market. Clydesdale was one of the last Scottish banks to open an office in London in 1877.
In 1878, the City of Glasgow Bank failed again. This led to more people putting their money in Clydesdale Bank. Clydesdale also gained nine of the Glasgow branches. After this big failure, a new law was made in 1879. It allowed banks to limit how much money their owners could lose. Clydesdale Bank became a limited company in 1882.
The years from 1890 to 1914 were quiet for the bank. But it still grew steadily. The number of branches increased from 92 to 153. This period marked the end of Clydesdale Bank being fully independent.
The Midland Bank Years
In 1917, a London bank called London City and Midland (later Midland Bank) wanted to buy Clydesdale. Clydesdale Bank was sold in 1920. However, it continued to run on its own. It was always called a partner, not just a part of Midland Bank.
Banks in Glasgow faced tough times between the two World Wars. Clydesdale Bank went from being the biggest lender in Scotland in 1920 to fifth place by 1939. Despite this, the bank kept opening branches. It focused on areas where exports were growing. Its network grew from 158 branches in 1919 to 205 in 1939.
Midland Bank had also bought the North of Scotland Bank in 1923. But the managers in Aberdeen did not want to join with Clydesdale. After the Second World War, the banks had to change. In 1950, they joined together to become the Clydesdale and North of Scotland Bank. Soon, it was just called Clydesdale Bank.
Clydesdale had 189 branches and the North of Scotland had 161. Together, they covered 221 towns. Before the merger, Clydesdale was the third-largest Scottish bank. The North of Scotland Bank was the smallest. The new, combined bank became Scotland's largest in terms of money held and branches.
By 1969, other banks had merged. This reduced the number of Scottish banks to three. Clydesdale was now the smallest. Midland Bank needed to make Clydesdale more efficient. Midland also needed more money. So, in 1987, it sold Clydesdale (and its Irish banks) to National Australia Bank.
National Australia Bank Group Ownership
In 1989, National Australia Bank bought Clydesdale Bank for £420 million.
In September 2013, the bank was fined for mistakes in calculating mortgage payments for many customers. In March 2015, a government committee said that Clydesdale Bank had not been fair in selling some business loans. In April 2015, the bank was fined again for issues with selling PPI insurance.
Becoming CYBG plc
In October 2014, National Australia Bank said it wanted to leave the UK market. It looked at different ways to sell Yorkshire and Clydesdale Banks. One idea was to offer their shares on the stock market. In October 2015, NAB confirmed it would sell Clydesdale Bank and Yorkshire Bank shares on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) in February 2016. They hoped to raise £2 billion.
The bank's new main company, CYBG plc, started trading shares on 3 February 2016. The starting share price meant that National Australia Bank lost about £2 billion on the sale. They also had to set aside money to cover claims from customers about past issues.
In March 2016, CYBG announced it would close 28 branches to save money. The next month, they announced more closures: 9 Clydesdale branches and 17 Yorkshire Bank branches.
Joining Virgin Money
In June 2018, CYBG plc announced it would buy Virgin Money for £1.7 billion. This deal meant that many employees might lose their jobs. Also, customers would slowly move to the Virgin Money brand over three years. The deal was completed on 15 October 2018.
In June 2019, CYBG plc said it planned to bring all its businesses under the Virgin Money brand. Clydesdale Bank, Yorkshire Bank, and B (another bank it owned) would start using the Virgin Money name in late 2019. They planned to fully switch by early 2021. To get ready, the old Virgin Money company joined with Clydesdale Bank plc on 21 October 2019.
See also
- List of banks in the United Kingdom
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