Union Bank of California
Encyclopedia
Union Bank, N.A., formerly known as Union Bank of California, N.A., is a full-service commercial bank
providing an array of financial services to individuals, small businesses, middle-market companies, and major corporations. Headquartered in San Francisco, Union Bank is a subsidiary of UnionBanCal Corporation
.
According to the FDIC summary of deposits on June 30, 2010, Union Bank is the eighteenth largest bank in the United States and is California’s third-largest bank by deposits. The bank has 403 banking offices in California, Oregon, Washington, and Texas and two international offices. UnionBanCal Corporation is a wholly owned subsidiary of The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Ltd., which is a subsidiary of Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE: MTU).
On December 18, 2008, Union Bank of California, N.A. officially changed its name to "Union Bank, N.A." It also announced to customers in June 2009 that it would officially retire its red box logo and adopt a new corporate logo and image, which was launched on July 20.
Union Bank was the first major California bank to offer seven-day-a-week banking when it opened its first supermarket branches in 1990; it now maintains 50 in-store branches. The bank has 608 ATMs
throughout the U.S. It is a member of the STAR
and CIRRUS
systems. CIRRUS, Plus, MasterCard
, VISA, Discover Card
, and American Express
cardholders can access Union Bank’s ATMs. The bank also belongs to the Star and Maestro point of sale
networks.
HighMark Capital Management is Union Bank’s investment management subsidiary. The unit manages more than $16.1 billion in assets. The bank offers 25 proprietary mutual funds called HighMark Funds.
Union Bank & Trust Company of Los Angeles, under the direction of Harry Volk, shortened its name to Union Bank in 1958. The bank became a one-bank holding company, Union Bancorp, in 1967. That same year Union Bank formed its own wholly owned venture capital subsidiary Union Ventures, under the direction of its founder Donald Prell
. Then in 1979 Standard Chartered Bank
of London acquired Union Bank.
, founded in 1880, helped usher in a new era of modernization and foreign trade, and eventually bridged the Pacific to establish an influential presence in California. Yokohama Specie Bank opened an office in San Francisco in 1886. After World War II in 1947, Yokohama Specie Bank became The Bank Of Tokyo, Ltd., and in 1953 it established a San Francisco subsidiary called The Bank of Tokyo California (BOTC). Tsukumo Shokai was renamed Mitsubishi Shokai in 1873, and in 1972 it opened the first Mitsubishi Bank of California office in Los Angeles.
BOTC acquired Southern California First National Bank of San Diego and renamed it California First in 1975. Although majority-owned by BOTC, it started trading on the NASDAQ
exchange. In 1988, California First Bank acquired Union Bancorp, retaining the Union Bank name.
was founded, making it the first incorporated commercial bank in the West.
In 1984, the Bank of California became a wholly owned subsidiary of Mitsubishi Bank, which had been founded by former samurai Yataro Iwasaki in 1880.
In August 2008, Mitsubishi UFJ offered to buy the 35 percent of Union Bank it did not already own, which Union Bank accepted.
On November 4, 2008, The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ (BTMU), a wholly owned subsidiary of Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG), announced that BTMU had successfully acquired all of the outstanding shares of UnionBanCal Corporation. The acquisition of the shares was consummated through a cash tender offer followed by a second-step merger.
(FDIC).
Also in April, Union Bank acquired the assets of Tamalpais Bank in Marin County, including seven branches. Federal regulators sold Tamalpais' assets to Union Bank, which rebranded all the acquired branches.
In 2010, Union Bank acquired San Rafael, California-based Tamalpais Bank and Everett, Washington-based Frontier Bank. Through purchase and assumption agreements with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Union Bank added 57 additional banking offices.
Today, UnionBanCal Corporation, the holding company of Union Bank, N.A., has $80.1 billion in assets. Its foundation is built on five lineages; three originate in California and two in Japan.
The Foundation proactively invests in the communities in which the bank and its businesses operate, targeting its resources to benefit low- to moderate-income populations. In order to achieve greater impact in the targeted communities, the Foundation focuses on the strategic program categories of community economic development, affordable housing, education and the environment.
requirements. The CSAP targets seven key areas for support and services: affordable housing, banking services, community outreach, corporate contributions, low-income consumer loans, small business loans and assistance, and supplier diversity.
Commercial bank
After the implementation of the Glass–Steagall Act, the U.S. Congress required that banks engage only in banking activities, whereas investment banks were limited to capital market activities. As the two no longer have to be under separate ownership under U.S...
providing an array of financial services to individuals, small businesses, middle-market companies, and major corporations. Headquartered in San Francisco, Union Bank is a subsidiary of UnionBanCal Corporation
UnionBanCal Corporation
UnionBanCal Corporation is a bank holding company in San Francisco, United States. UnionBanCal has assets of $68.7 billion at March 31, 2009.It is a member of the Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group.-Sections:*Community Banking and Investment Services Group...
.
According to the FDIC summary of deposits on June 30, 2010, Union Bank is the eighteenth largest bank in the United States and is California’s third-largest bank by deposits. The bank has 403 banking offices in California, Oregon, Washington, and Texas and two international offices. UnionBanCal Corporation is a wholly owned subsidiary of The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Ltd., which is a subsidiary of Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE: MTU).
On December 18, 2008, Union Bank of California, N.A. officially changed its name to "Union Bank, N.A." It also announced to customers in June 2009 that it would officially retire its red box logo and adopt a new corporate logo and image, which was launched on July 20.
Union Bank was the first major California bank to offer seven-day-a-week banking when it opened its first supermarket branches in 1990; it now maintains 50 in-store branches. The bank has 608 ATMs
Automated teller machine
An automated teller machine or automatic teller machine, also known as a Cashpoint , cash machine or sometimes a hole in the wall in British English, is a computerised telecommunications device that provides the clients of a financial institution with access to financial transactions in a public...
throughout the U.S. It is a member of the STAR
STAR (interbank network)
STAR is an interbank network and EFTPOS network in the United States. It is the largest American interbank network, with 250,000 ATMs, 134 million cardholders and over 5,700 participating financial institutions. The network is owned and operated by STAR Networks, a subsidiary company of First Data...
and CIRRUS
Cirrus (interbank network)
Cirrus is a worldwide interbank network operated by MasterCard Worldwide, and was founded in 1986. It links MasterCard, Maestro, Diners Club credit, debit and prepaid cards to a network of over 1,000,000 ATMs in 93 countries....
systems. CIRRUS, Plus, MasterCard
MasterCard
Mastercard Incorporated or MasterCard Worldwide is an American multinational financial services corporation with its headquarters in the MasterCard International Global Headquarters, Purchase, Harrison, New York, United States...
, VISA, Discover Card
Discover Card
The Discover Card is a major credit card, issued primarily in the United States. It was originally introduced by Sears in 1985, and was part of Dean Witter, and then Morgan Stanley, until 2007, when Discover Financial Services became an independent company. Novus, a major processing center, used to...
, and American Express
American Express
American Express Company or AmEx, is an American multinational financial services corporation headquartered in Three World Financial Center, Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States. Founded in 1850, it is one of the 30 components of the Dow Jones Industrial Average. The company is best...
cardholders can access Union Bank’s ATMs. The bank also belongs to the Star and Maestro point of sale
Point of sale
Point of sale or checkout is the location where a transaction occurs...
networks.
HighMark Capital Management is Union Bank’s investment management subsidiary. The unit manages more than $16.1 billion in assets. The bank offers 25 proprietary mutual funds called HighMark Funds.
California origins
In the early 1900s, Kaspare Cohn, a German immigrant with a fabric and clothing business, established Kaspare Cohn Commercial & Savings Bank in Los Angeles. In 1918, Kaspare Cohn Commercial & Savings Bank was renamed Union Bank & Trust Company of Los Angeles.Union Bank & Trust Company of Los Angeles, under the direction of Harry Volk, shortened its name to Union Bank in 1958. The bank became a one-bank holding company, Union Bancorp, in 1967. That same year Union Bank formed its own wholly owned venture capital subsidiary Union Ventures, under the direction of its founder Donald Prell
Donald Prell
Donald B. Prell is a venture capitalist and futurist who created Datamation, the first magazine devoted solely to the computer hardware and software industry.-Early life:...
. Then in 1979 Standard Chartered Bank
Standard Chartered Bank
Standard Chartered PLC is a multinational financial services company headquartered in London, United Kingdom with operations in more than seventy countries...
of London acquired Union Bank.
Bank of Tokyo
In Japan, Tsukumo Shokai, formed in 1870, and the Yokohama Specie BankYokohama Specie Bank
is a Japanese bank founded in Yokohama, Japan in the year 1880. It later became The Bank of Tokyo, Ltd. in 1947. The bank played a significant role in Japanese trade with China...
, founded in 1880, helped usher in a new era of modernization and foreign trade, and eventually bridged the Pacific to establish an influential presence in California. Yokohama Specie Bank opened an office in San Francisco in 1886. After World War II in 1947, Yokohama Specie Bank became The Bank Of Tokyo, Ltd., and in 1953 it established a San Francisco subsidiary called The Bank of Tokyo California (BOTC). Tsukumo Shokai was renamed Mitsubishi Shokai in 1873, and in 1972 it opened the first Mitsubishi Bank of California office in Los Angeles.
BOTC acquired Southern California First National Bank of San Diego and renamed it California First in 1975. Although majority-owned by BOTC, it started trading on the NASDAQ
NASDAQ
The NASDAQ Stock Market, also known as the NASDAQ, is an American stock exchange. "NASDAQ" originally stood for "National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations". It is the second-largest stock exchange by market capitalization in the world, after the New York Stock Exchange. As of...
exchange. In 1988, California First Bank acquired Union Bancorp, retaining the Union Bank name.
Mitsubishi Bank
On July 5, 1864, the Bank of CaliforniaBank of California
The Bank of California was opened in San Francisco, California, on July 4, 1864, by William Chapman Ralston. It was the first commercial bank in the Western United States, the second-richest bank in the nation, and considered instrumental in developing the American Old West.-History:The ancestor of...
was founded, making it the first incorporated commercial bank in the West.
In 1984, the Bank of California became a wholly owned subsidiary of Mitsubishi Bank, which had been founded by former samurai Yataro Iwasaki in 1880.
The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ
In April 1996, The Mitsubishi Bank, Ltd. and The Bank of Tokyo, Ltd. merged in Japan. In San Francisco, The Bank of California and Union Bank consolidated into UnionBanCal Corporation, a bank holding company, and its primary subsidiary Union Bank of California, N.A. With the merger, Union Bank could now trace its history back to the founding of The Bank of California 132 years before. In 1999, UnionBanCal Corporation became a publicly traded company listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE:UB).In August 2008, Mitsubishi UFJ offered to buy the 35 percent of Union Bank it did not already own, which Union Bank accepted.
On November 4, 2008, The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ (BTMU), a wholly owned subsidiary of Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG), announced that BTMU had successfully acquired all of the outstanding shares of UnionBanCal Corporation. The acquisition of the shares was consummated through a cash tender offer followed by a second-step merger.
Union Bank's recent acquisitions
On April 30, 2010, Union Bank, N.A., acquired certain assets and assumed certain liabilities of Everett, Washington-based Frontier Bank in a purchase and assumption agreement with the Federal Deposit Insurance CorporationFederal Deposit Insurance Corporation
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation is a United States government corporation created by the Glass–Steagall Act of 1933. It provides deposit insurance, which guarantees the safety of deposits in member banks, currently up to $250,000 per depositor per bank. , the FDIC insures deposits at...
(FDIC).
Also in April, Union Bank acquired the assets of Tamalpais Bank in Marin County, including seven branches. Federal regulators sold Tamalpais' assets to Union Bank, which rebranded all the acquired branches.
Modern Day
The modern Union Bank was formed in 1996 when The Bank of California and Union Bank combined to create Union Bank of California as part of the merger of The Mitsubishi Bank, Ltd., and The Bank of Tokyo, Ltd., which created the world’s largest bank, The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi, Ltd. In 2008, Union Bank of California shortened its name to Union Bank, signaling both its strategic plan to expand its national brand recognition, and a new era in its banking history.In 2010, Union Bank acquired San Rafael, California-based Tamalpais Bank and Everett, Washington-based Frontier Bank. Through purchase and assumption agreements with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Union Bank added 57 additional banking offices.
Today, UnionBanCal Corporation, the holding company of Union Bank, N.A., has $80.1 billion in assets. Its foundation is built on five lineages; three originate in California and two in Japan.
Union Bank Foundation
The Union Bank Foundation strategically funds community and regional initiatives that will position the Foundation as an innovator of partnerships and a grant-maker helping to create and sustain healthy communities.The Foundation proactively invests in the communities in which the bank and its businesses operate, targeting its resources to benefit low- to moderate-income populations. In order to achieve greater impact in the targeted communities, the Foundation focuses on the strategic program categories of community economic development, affordable housing, education and the environment.
Community Reinvestment Act
Union Bank's Board of Directors approves the bank's Community Service Action Plan (CSAP), which is used to ensure the bank's compliance with Community Reinvestment ActCommunity Reinvestment Act
The Community Reinvestment Act is a United States federal law designed to encourage commercial banks and savings associations to help meet the needs of borrowers in all segments of their communities, including low- and moderate-income neighborhoods...
requirements. The CSAP targets seven key areas for support and services: affordable housing, banking services, community outreach, corporate contributions, low-income consumer loans, small business loans and assistance, and supplier diversity.
| Key Areas | Bank Actions |
|---|---|
| Affordable Housing | Supports organizations that provide basic shelter for low- to moderate-income individuals; finances construction, purchase, refinance, and rehabilitation of low-income housing units |
| Banking Services | Provides special services to help low-income individuals manage funds, including: low-cost checking and savings, government check cashing services, and alternative services such as Cash & Save |
| Community Outreach | Offers community outreach efforts, including: Branch involvement in local community activities; Communication between bank and community leaders; Promotion of small business lending to minorities and low-income individuals |
| Corporate Contributions | Annually awards a total of 2 percent of the bank's after-tax earnings to nonprofits through the bank and foundation |
| Low-income Consumer Loans | Makes loans available to applicants with gross family income within guidelines established by Housing and Urban Development |
| Small Business Loans and Assistance | Makes Small Business Administration-guaranteed loans to qualified borrowers; issues credit to minority- and woman-owned small businesses |
| Supplier Diversity | Procures goods and services from minority- and woman-owned vendors |