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The Bank of Hawaii Corporation ( haw, Panakō o Hawaii; abbreviated BOH) is a
regional In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...
commercial bank A commercial bank is a financial institution which accepts deposits from the public and gives loans for the purposes of consumption and investment to make profit. It can also refer to a bank, or a division of a large bank, which deals with co ...
headquartered in
Honolulu Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the island ...
,
Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...
. It is Hawaii's second oldest bank and its largest locally owned bank in that the majority of the voting stockholders reside within the state. Bank of Hawaii has the most accounts, customers, branches, and ATMs of any financial institution in the state (although BancWest's First Hawaiian Bank holds a greater number of dollars in deposits). The bank consists of four business segments: retail banking, commercial banking, investment services, and treasury. The bank is currently headed by chairman, president and chief executive officer, Peter S. Ho.


Beginnings

In 1893,
Charles Montague Cooke Charles Montague Cooke (May 6, 1849 – August 27, 1909) was a businessman during the Kingdom of Hawaii, Republic of Hawaii, and Territory of Hawaii. Life Charles Montague Cooke was born May 6, 1849 in Honolulu, Hawaii. His father was Amos Star ...
(1849–1909) with his brother-in-law Joseph Ballard Atherton and business partner Peter Cushman Jones founded Bank of Hawaii. In 1897, it was chartered in the Republic of Hawaii by Interior Minister James A. King. A decade after its founding, in 1903, the bank opened its first branch in Kauai. In 1922, the bank acquired First Bank of Hilo, which had four branches. In 1930, it amalgamated Bank of Maui.


Bank of Maui

Charles Dexter Lufkin organized First National Bank of
Wailuku Wailuku is a census-designated place (CDP) in and county seat of Maui County, Hawaii, United States. The population was 17,697 at the 2020 census. Wailuku is located just west of Kahului, at the mouth of the Iao Valley. In the early 20th centur ...
in 1901. Five years later, he had organized
Lahaina Lahaina ( haw, Lāhainā) is the largest census-designated place (CDP) in West Maui, Maui County, Hawaii, United States and includes the Kaanapali and Kapalua beach resorts. As of the 2020 census, the CDP had a resident population of 12,702. Lah ...
National Bank. Then he organized the First National Bank of Paia in 1913. Lastly, in 1917, First National Bank of Paia merged with Lahaina National Bank and First National Bank of Wailuku to form Bank of Maui.


Activities in Hawaii since 1971

In 1971, BOH formed a bank holding company called Hawaii Bancorporation.Alternate Link
via
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.
In 1979, Hawaii Bancorporation changed its name to Bancorp Hawaii. In 1985, BOH as Bancorp Hawaii acquired the Hawaiian Trust Company for $19 million.Alternate Link
via
ProQuest ProQuest LLC is an Ann Arbor, Michigan-based global information-content and technology company, founded in 1938 as University Microfilms by Eugene B. Power. ProQuest is known for its applications and information services for libraries, provid ...
.
Alternate Link
via
ProQuest ProQuest LLC is an Ann Arbor, Michigan-based global information-content and technology company, founded in 1938 as University Microfilms by Eugene B. Power. ProQuest is known for its applications and information services for libraries, provid ...
.
In 1990, BOH as Bancorp Hawaii acquired FirstFed America Inc. with its First Federal Savings and Loan Association in Hawaii and First Savings of Guam subsidiaries for $141 million in cash. First Federal Savings was maintained as a separate entity until 1998 when it was merged into the Bank of Hawaii. Bancorp Hawaii changed its name to Pacific Century Financial Corporation (PCFC) in 1997. Large drop in the firm's stock in early 2000 caused by bad loans and quick expansion outside of the firm's core business of Hawaii, Guam, and American Samoa led to a change in management. BOH as Pacific Century Financial Corporation sold off its credit card division to American Express for an undisclosed amount in 2001. In 2002, Pacific Century Financial Corporation was renamed Bank of Hawaii Corporation.


Activities on the U.S. Mainland

In its first expansion onto the continental United States, BOH as Bancorp Hawaii acquired the
Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ; nv, Hoozdo; es, Fénix or , yuf-x-wal, Banyà:nyuwá) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona, with 1,608,139 residents as of 2020. It is the fifth-most populous city in the United States, and the on ...
-based First National Bancorp of Arizona with its five-office First National Bank of Arizona subsidiary for an undisclosed amount in 1987.Alternate Link
via
ProQuest ProQuest LLC is an Ann Arbor, Michigan-based global information-content and technology company, founded in 1938 as University Microfilms by Eugene B. Power. ProQuest is known for its applications and information services for libraries, provid ...
.
Ten years later, through its First National Bank of Arizona subsidiary, BOH acquired all four
Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...
branch offices from Home Savings of America for an undisclosed amount in 1997 and merged those offices into First National while at nearly the same time changed the name of First National to Pacific Century Bank NA. The following year, BOH as Pacific Century Financial Corporation acquired the Encino,
California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
-based CU Bancorp with its California United Bank subsidiary for $183 million in stock and cash. Just shortly after the acquisition was finalized in 1998, California United and its 22 offices in
Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most populous urban a ...
was merged into Phoenix-based Pacific Century Bank and the headquarters for the newly combined Pacific Century Bank was moved to Encino. After 14 years on the Mainland, BOH decided to abandon their activities on the Mainland in 2001 by selling all 9 Arizona branch offices of the Pacific Century Bank to Zions Bancorporation for an undisclosed amount and all 20 California branch offices of the Pacific Century Bank to U.S. Bancorp for an undisclosed amount. Zion merged their purchase into their National Bank of Arizona subsidiary.


International activities

It was not until 1959 that BOH made another novel move when it opened its first Pacific Islands branch on
Kwajalein Kwajalein Atoll (; Marshallese: ) is part of the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI). The southernmost and largest island in the atoll is named Kwajalein Island, which its majority English-speaking residents (about 1,000 mostly U.S. civil ...
. Two years later, it opened a branch in both
Palau Palau,, officially the Republic of Palau and historically ''Belau'', ''Palaos'' or ''Pelew'', is an island country and microstate in the western Pacific. The nation has approximately 340 islands and connects the western chain of the ...
and
Guam Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...
. Ten years later, BOH continued its international expansion by absorbing Bank of American Samoa, which the Navy had established in 1914. That same year, it created ''Banque de Tahiti'' as a joint venture between itself and
Crédit Lyonnais The Crédit Lyonnais (, "Lyon Credit ompany) was a major French bank, created in 1863 and absorbed by former rival Crédit Agricole in 2003. Its head office was initially in Lyon but moved to Paris in 1882. In the early years of the 20th c ...
. The next year, BOH established a branch in
Yap Yap ( yap, Waqaab) traditionally refers to an island group located in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean, a part of Yap State. The name "Yap" in recent years has come to also refer to the state within the Federated States of Micr ...
. Branches in Ponape and
Kosrae Kosrae ( ), formerly known as Kusaie or Strong's Island, is an island in the Federated States of Micronesia. The State of Kosrae is one of the four states of the Federated States of Micronesia, and includes the main island of Kosrae and a few near ...
followed in the subsequent years. It also continued its expansion outside Hawaii with the establishment of a branch in Saipan. Three years later, BOH and Crédit Lyonnais established another joint-venture, ''Banque de Nouvelle Calédonie'' in
Nouméa Nouméa () is the capital and largest city of the French special collectivity of New Caledonia and is also the largest francophone city in Oceania. It is situated on a peninsula in the south of New Caledonia's main island, Grande Terre, and ...
. In 1980, BOH opened a branch in
Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...
. BOH acquired Wells Fargo Bank's Seoul, Korea, and Singapore operations in 1991. Two years later, it acquired
Banque Indosuez Banque Indosuez was a French bank, the product of the 1975 merger of Banque de l'Indochine and Banque de Suez et de l'Union des mines. It was purchased by Crédit Agricole in 1996, and formed the core of what is now Crédit Agricole Corporate an ...
's operations in
Vanuatu Vanuatu ( or ; ), officially the Republic of Vanuatu (french: link=no, République de Vanuatu; bi, Ripablik blong Vanuatu), is an island country located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is east of no ...
, which became Banque d’Hawaii (Vanuatu). That same year, BOH also opened its first branch in Suva, Fiji in 1993. Branches in Nadi and Lautoka followed. In 1994, BOH acquired Commonwealth Bank of Australia's 51% ownership in the National Bank of Solomon Islands. BOH also acquired Crédit Lyonnais' holdings in Banque de Nouvelle Calédonie, giving BOH 91 percent ownership. Banque de Nouvelle Calédonie changed its name to Bank of Hawaii—Nouvelle Calédonie. BOH also purchased Banque Indosuez Nuigini in
Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...
from Banque Indosuez for $5.6 million and renamed it Bank of Hawaii (PNG) Ltd. In addition to its main office in
Port Moresby (; Tok Pisin: ''Pot Mosbi''), also referred to as Pom City or simply Moresby, is the capital and largest city of Papua New Guinea. It is one of the largest cities in the southwestern Pacific (along with Jayapura) outside of Australia and New ...
, Bank of Hawaii (PNG) also had an office in Lae, PNG's second port city on the Northeast Coast. Indosuez Nuigini was established in 1983 with 49 percent Indosuez participation, 41.5 percent Bank of Papua New Guinea, and the remainder public.


International acquisitions

In 1998, BOH bought 5.4mn convertible notes of Bank of Queensland for $22 million as part of a strategic alliance giving rise to a true reflecting of the convertible note value into 49% ownership at that time.Alternate Link
via
ProQuest ProQuest LLC is an Ann Arbor, Michigan-based global information-content and technology company, founded in 1938 as University Microfilms by Eugene B. Power. ProQuest is known for its applications and information services for libraries, provid ...
.
It also acquired 100 percent of ''Banque Paribas Pacifique'' (est. 1972; 3 branches) and 70 percent of ''Banque Paribas Polynésie'' (est. 1984; 1 branch). BOH integrated the operations with Bank of Hawaii-Nouvelle Calédonie and Banque de Tahiti, respectively. In 1999, BOH bought 5.8mn shares (approx. 10 percent) in Bank of Queensland.


Withdraw from international financial services markets

In 2001, BOH sold its 6.2mn shares and 5.4mn convertible notes in Bank of Queensland for $20 million and $16 million respectively. The decision reflected PCFC's new strategic plan, which mandated a focus on the bank's core markets in Hawaii,
American Samoa American Samoa ( sm, Amerika Sāmoa, ; also ' or ') is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of the island country of Samoa. Its location is centered on . It is east of the Internationa ...
, and
Guam Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...
. BOH sold its shareholding in the ''Bank of Tonga'' and ''Pacific Commercial Bank of Samoa'' to
Westpac Westpac Banking Corporation, known simply as Westpac, is an Australian multinational banking and financial services company headquartered at Westpac Place in Sydney, New South Wales. Established in 1817 as the Bank of New South Wales, ...
. BOH and Westpac both had 30 percent interests in Bank of Tonga and 42 percent interests in Pacific Commercial Bank. BOH sold its operations in Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, and Fiji to ANZ for AU$100 million. BOH sold its approximately 95 percent share interest in its French Polynesia and New Caledonia operations to France-based ''Caisse Nationale des Caisses d'Epargne'' (CNCE). Its operations in French Polynesia included 17 branches of its subsidiary, Banque de Tahiti, and about 265 employees. Its operations in New Caledonia included eight branches of subsidiary Bank of Hawaii-Nouvelle Caledonie and about 190 employees. Lastly, BOH closed its offices in Hong Kong, Seoul, Singapore, and Taipei. In 2002, BOH was unable to find a buyer for its bank properties in the Central Pacific when it was trying to withdraw from those markets. As a result, BOH closed its
Majuro Majuro (; Marshallese: ' ) is the capital and largest city of the Marshall Islands. It is also a large coral atoll of 64 islands in the Pacific Ocean. It forms a legislative district of the Ratak (Sunrise) Chain of the Marshall Islands. The ato ...
branch in the
Republic of the Marshall Islands The Marshall Islands ( mh, Ṃajeḷ), officially the Republic of the Marshall Islands ( mh, Aolepān Aorōkin Ṃajeḷ),'' () is an independent island country and microstate near the Equator in the Pacific Ocean, slightly west of the Intern ...
(RMI) and its three branches in Pohnpei, Yap, and Kosrae in the
Federated States of Micronesia The Federated States of Micronesia (; abbreviated FSM) is an island country in Oceania. It consists of four states from west to east, Yap, Chuuk, Pohnpei and Kosraethat are spread across the western Pacific. Together, the states comprise a ...
(FSM). BOH turned over its 51 percent interest in National Bank of Solomon Islands to the government of the
Solomon Islands Solomon Islands is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 900 smaller islands in Oceania, to the east of Papua New Guinea and north-west of Vanuatu. It has a land area of , and a population of approx. 700,000. Its capit ...
.


Governance

Poor performance by the bank in early 2000, contributed to chairman and CEO Lawrence M. Johnson's resignation in 2000 and bank president Richard Dahl being passed over as Johnson's replacement. Dahl left the company in 2002. In November 2000, Michael E. O'Neill was hired from outside the company to serve as chairman and CEO to correct mistakes made by the previous management. O'Neill did not take a salary or any bonuses during his three years at the helm, but in 2004 he controlled about 2.73 million — about 5 percent — of the bank's total shares directly or under option. O'Neill reversed the company's decline by selling off properties outside the company's core business area of Hawaii, Guam, and American Samoa. O'Neill stepped down as chairman and CEO in 2004. In December 2003, Allan R. Landon was promoted from chief financial officer to president and later to chairman and CEO upon O'Neill leaving in September 2004. Under Landon's leadership, the Bank of Hawaii "survived the
financial crisis A financial crisis is any of a broad variety of situations in which some financial assets suddenly lose a large part of their nominal value. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, many financial crises were associated with banking panics, and man ...
without federal assistance and prospered in its aftermath". In 2008, Landon handed his position of president to Peter S. Ho while Landon retained his chairman and CEO posts. Two years later Ho was given the additional titles of chairman and chief executive officer in addition to president upon the retirement of Allan R. Landon in 2010.


See also

* List of S&P 400 companies


References


External links

* *
BOH Annual Reports (1999–present)
{{authority control Companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange Banks based in Hawaii American companies established in 1897 Banks established in 1897 Companies based in Honolulu 1897 establishments in Hawaii