The Bank of America, Los Angeles, was established in 1923 by

Orra E. Monnette Orra Eugene Monnette (1873–1936) was an attorney, author and banker. Monnette was also the founder of the Bank of America, Los Angeles, L.A. Early life Orra E. Monnette was born in southern Crawford County, Ohio to Mervin J. Monnette and Olive Hu ...

, emerging from a series of mergers between Los Angeles–based banks between 1909 and 1923. The formation of BoA L.A. predates the creation of the Bank of America, merging with the

Bank of Italy The Bank of Italy ( Italian: ''Banca d'Italia'', informally referred to as ''Bankitalia''), (), is the central bank of Italy and part of the European System of Central Banks. It is located in Palazzo Koch, via Nazionale, Rome. The bank's cur ...

in 1928-29 to form the

Bank of America The Bank of America Corporation (often abbreviated BofA or BoA) is an American multinational investment bank and financial services holding company headquartered at the Bank of America Corporate Center in Charlotte, North Carolina. The bank ...

History

The Bank of America, Los Angeles was formed when Monnette purchased controlling interest of the

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

based American National Bank of Los Angeles (ANB) using profits from his father's silver mine in Tonopah,

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...

. In 1909, ANB was merged into Citizens Trust and Savings Bank; in 1911, Monnette purchased the Broadway Bank and Trust Company, which when merged with the family’s other holdings formed the Citizens Bank and Trust Company in 1911. In 1923, Citizens Bank and Trust Company was renamed Bank of America, Los Angeles. Monnette's intention was to build capital for national expansion with

Amadeo Giannini Amadeo Pietro Giannini (), also known as Amadeo Peter Giannini or A. P. Giannini (May 6, 1870 – June 3, 1949) was an American banker who founded the Bank of Italy, which became Bank of America. Giannini is credited as the inventor of many modern ...

(founder of the

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17t ...

-based

) as a minority investor. Giannini had founded the Bank of Italy on October 17, 1904. In 1928, Giannini approached Monnette about pursuing a merger with BoA; both were concerned about the state of the American economy. One thing that the Bank of America, Los Angeles had that made it an attractive merge partner was its advanced bank branch system that employed centralized accounting and cash distribution system. BoA LA had its own secure fleet of armoured cars to transport branch cash supplies, keeping its branches stocked with controlled amounts while other banks kept larger amounts on site, and thus away from investment purposes. With Monnette wishing to ease into retirement, and with no real heir apparent, BoA LA welcomed the combination of the two concerns under the name Bank of America. They created what would become the largest banking institution in the country. The resulting bank, known as Bank of Italy, emerged prior to the

stock market crash of 1929 The Wall Street Crash of 1929, also known as the Great Crash, was a major American stock market crash that occurred in the autumn of 1929. It started in September and ended late in October, when share prices on the New York Stock Exchange colla ...

. It was renamed on November 3, 1930, to Bank of America National Trust and Savings Association, which was the only such designated bank in the United States at that time. Giannini and Monnette headed the resulting company, serving as co-chairs.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bank of America, Los Angeles Banks based in California Bank of America legacy banks Companies based in Los Angeles County, California Banks established in 1923 1923 establishments in California

History

See also

References