Reliance Bank Limited, formerly known as The

Salvation Army Salvation (from Latin: ''salvatio'', from ''salva'', 'safe, saved') is the state of being saved or protected from harm or a dire situation. In religion and theology, ''salvation'' generally refers to the deliverance of the soul from sin and its ...

Bank, was founded in 1890 by

William Booth William Booth (10 April 182920 August 1912) was an English Methodist preacher who, along with his wife, Catherine, founded the Salvation Army and became its first " General" (1878–1912). His 1890 book In Darkest England and The Way Out o ...

. When Booth needed to attract investments to finance

mortgages A mortgage loan or simply mortgage (), in civil law jurisdicions known also as a hypothec loan, is a loan used either by purchasers of real property to raise funds to buy real estate, or by existing property owners to raise funds for any ...

on property vital to the work of the movement, his response was to set up a bank.

History

Founded by William Booth in 1890 as The Salvation Army Deposit Bank, the bank was registered in 1891 as The Salvation Army Bank. Out of the bank’s expansion, grew the need for limited liability status and in 1901, The Salvation Army Bank became Reliance Bank Limited. Today, the Salvation Army International Trustee Company still retain sole ownership of the bank and each year receive a share of the bank's allowable profits (a total of £12 million over the last 10 years). As wll as The Salvation Army it is also used by private customers, other churches,

charities A charitable organization or charity is an organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being (e.g. educational, religious or other activities serving the public interest or common good). The legal definition of a cha ...

, and businesses. The Reliance Bank is not a clearing bank and uses the

National Westminster Bank National Westminster Bank, commonly known as NatWest, is a major retail and commercial bank in the United Kingdom based in London, England. It was established in 1968 by the merger of National Provincial Bank and Westminster Bank. In 200 ...

to act as its agent in this respect. It is registered with the UK financial services regulator, the FCA. In April 2021, Reliance Bank ceased offering Personal Current Accounts to new customers.

References

Banks of the United Kingdom The Salvation Army Ethical banking Banks established in 1890 {{UK-bank-stub