National Bank of Canada

National Bank of Canada

The National Bank of Canada, with head offices in Montréal, is a Canadian chartered bank which commenced operations in 1979 as a result of the merger between the Banque Canadienne Nationale (founded in 1859 as the Banque National; merged 1924 with Banque d'Hochelaga and new name adopted 1925) and The Provincial Bank of Canada (founded in 1861).

In 1981 it purchased Laurentide Mortgage Corporation, which specialized in mortgage loan operations, and several active subsidiaries of Laurentide Financial Corporation. In 1986 it took over the Mercantile Bank of Canada. It also owns 67% of Levesque Beaubien Geoffrion Inc, one of Canada's largest and most influential brokerage houses.

Today, it conducts a general banking business and offers related financial services at over 600 branches and offices throughout Canada. In 1997 it had a net income of $342 million, assets of $66.2 billion and over 16 000 employees.