COMPANY·HISTORIES
NAIC 52232

Financial Transactions Processing, Reserve, and Clearinghouse Activities (pt)

How the companies in this industry began, and the forces that shaped them.

18companies1812–1999founding years18still active0no longer operating
§ 01

The industry over time

Companies foundedEconomyTechnologyEnvironmentHistory
FoundedCitigroup Inc.
1812
FoundedWestern Union Financial Services, Inc.
1851
FoundedLloyds TSB Group plc
1865
FoundedAT&T Corporation
1885
1903
TechnologyThe Wright brothers achieve powered flight.
1914
EconomyWorld War I begins; global trade reorders.
FoundedU.S. Bancorp
1929
EconomyThe stock market crashes; the Great Depression spreads worldwide.
1939
EconomyWorld War II begins; wartime production surges.
1945
EconomyThe war ends; a long global expansion begins.
1947
TechnologyThe transistor is invented.
FoundedFirst Albany Companies Inc.
1953
1958
TechnologyThe integrated circuit is demonstrated.
FoundedCertegy, Inc.
1961
1962
EnvironmentSilent Spring launches the modern environmental movement.
FoundedAmerican Express Company
1965
FoundedMacquarie Bank Ltd.
1969
FoundedConcord EFS, Inc.
1970
FoundedFirst Data Corporation
1971
EconomyThe dollar leaves the gold standard; currencies float.
FoundedSynovus Financial Corp.
1972
1973
EconomyThe OPEC oil embargo triggers a global shock.
FoundedAdvanta Corporation
1974
1975
TechnologyThe personal-computer era begins.
FoundedDatek Online Holdings Corp.
1978
1979
EconomyA second oil crisis drives inflation higher worldwide.
1981
TechnologyThe IBM PC launches and sets a standard.
1984
TechnologyApple ships the Macintosh; the GUI era begins.
1987
EconomyBlack Monday: markets fall sharply around the world.
FoundedAffiliated Computer Services, Inc.
1988
1989
HistoryThe Berlin Wall falls; global markets open up.
1991
TechnologyThe World Wide Web is released to the public.
1993
TechnologyThe Mosaic browser brings the web to everyone.
1995
TechnologyWindows 95 launches; the internet goes mainstream.
FoundedNordea AB
1997
EconomyThe Asian financial crisis rattles global markets.
EnvironmentThe Kyoto Protocol sets the first climate targets.
FoundedBank One Corporation
1998
FoundedLaBranche & Co. Inc.
1999
2000
EconomyThe dot-com bubble bursts.
2004
TechnologySocial media and Web 2.0 take hold.
2007
TechnologyThe iPhone launches the smartphone era.
2008
EconomyThe global financial crisis freezes credit worldwide.
2010
TechnologyCloud computing goes mainstream for business.
2015
EnvironmentThe Paris Agreement sets global climate targets.
2020
EconomyThe COVID-19 pandemic upends the global economy.
2022
EconomyInflation spikes; central banks raise rates sharply.
2023
TechnologyGenerative AI reaches mainstream business use.
§ 02

The companies

Citigroup Inc. →
Active · founded 1812
The largest financial services company in the world, with assets in excess of $1 trillion, Citigroup Inc.
Western Union Financial Services, Inc. →
Active · founded 1851
Western Union Financial Services, Inc.
Lloyds TSB Group plc →
Active · founded 1865 · United Kingdom
Lloyds TSB Group plc is one of the Big Four British clearing banks in the United Kingdom.
AT&T Corporation →
Active · founded 1885
AT&T Corporation organizes its business into two segments, business services and consumer services.
U.S. Bancorp →
Active · founded 1929
U.S.
First Albany Companies Inc. →
Active · founded 1953
First Albany Companies Inc., acting through its subsidiaries, conducts a full-service investment banking and brokerage…
Certegy, Inc. →
Active · founded 1961
Certegy, Inc.
American Express Company →
Active · founded 1965
American Express Company, a multibillion-dollar holding company whose subsidiaries provide travel and financial…
Macquarie Bank Ltd. →
Active · founded 1969 · Australia
Macquarie Bank Ltd.
Concord EFS, Inc. →
Active · founded 1970
Concord EFS, Inc., based in Memphis, Tennessee, provides a full range of electronic payment and deposit services, from…
First Data Corporation →
Active · founded 1971
In 1995 two of the world's largest financial data processing businesses--First Financial Management Corporation and…
Synovus Financial Corp. →
Active · founded 1972
Synovus Financial Corp.
Advanta Corporation →
Active · founded 1974
Advanta Corporation originates, services, and sells small business credit card and home equity loans.
Datek Online Holdings Corp. →
Active · founded 1978
Datek Online Holdings Corp.
Affiliated Computer Services, Inc. →
Active · founded 1988
Affiliated Computer Services, Inc.
Nordea AB →
Active · founded 1997 · Sweden
First off the starting block among pan-European banking mergers--a trend expected to boom in the early years of the…
Bank One Corporation →
Active · founded 1998
Chicago-based Bank One Corporation formed in 1998 through the merger of Banc One Corporation, headquartered in…
LaBranche & Co. Inc. →
Active · founded 1999
LaBranche & Co.
Build It Today

Starting a financial transactions processing, reserve, and clearinghouse activities (pt) company now

Each week we rebuild one of these stories for today's tools and capital.