U.S. Bank History: Founding, Timeline, and Milestones - Zippia (2024)

That bank, in turn, traced its roots to the founding of First National Bank of Cincinnati in 1863.

First Bank System can trace its roots to the formation of First National Bank of Minneapolis in 1864.

In September of 1873, Jay Cooke & Company [JCC] began having issues marketing railway bonds.

On September 18, 1873, they declared bankruptcy.

The United States Bank name first appeared as United States National Bank of Portland, established in Portland, Oregon, in 1891.

Like the economic depression touched off in 1893, however, United States National withstood the pernicious effects of financial collapse all around it, although deposits once again shrank during the period.

In 1893, two years after United States National began operating, a severe economic depression gripped the country, devastating more than 500 of the nation’s banks and more than 16,000 businesses by the end of the year.

Less than a decade old in 1900, United States National had already passed Ainsworth National in volume of business to rank as the third largest bank and was gaining ground on Merchants National to secure the industry’s second position.

In 1902, United States National and Ainsworth National, the fourth largest bank, agreed to merge, creating a banking entity that kept the United States National corporate title and controlled resources valued at more than $2 million.

During the first decade of the century, the number of national banks in Oregon increased from 27 to 75 and deposits quadrupled, as the city of Portland, with 200,000 residents by 1910, flourished economically.

Three years later United States National merged with Wells Fargo Company’s Portland bank as growth and prosperity reigned, then in 1917 the bank merged with another large Portland bank, Lumbermens National.

In 1925, the bank set the tone for the magnitude of growth ahead when it merged with the venerable Ladd and Tilton.

The official start of the Great Depression was the stock market crash on ‘Black Tuesday’, October 29, 1929.

With the stock market crash of October 1929 and the onset of the Great Depression, conditions for the banking industry grew harsher and harsher.

United States Bancorp was founded in 1929 and is headquartered in Minneapolis, MN.“

In 1929, the First National Bank of Minneapolis joined with the First National Bank of St Paul to form a joint holding company for both banks that was called the First Bank Stock Corporation, while keeping both subsidiary banks legally separate.

Later in 1930, the United States began experiencing bank runs due to this crisis, which led to a massive wave of bank failures.

The FDIC now proudly states that “since 1933, no depositor has lost a penny of FDIC-insured funds.”

As the depression grew worse during the first few months of Franklin Roosevelt’s presidency, he decided in early 1933 to close all the nation’s banks for ten days.

Pursuant to the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, United States Bancorp Investments must provide clients with certain financial information.

During the 1940s, United States National expanded its presence geographically by acquiring existing banks and converting them to United States National branches, such as the bank’s 1940 purchase of the Medford National Bank, First National of Corvallis, and the Ladd and Bush Bank of Salem.

Although the number of banking units comprising United States National’s growing branch network rose only modestly during World War II, climbing from 26 to 29, deposits nearly tripled during the war years, leaping to $581 million by the end of 1945.

Loans for consumer purchases proliferated, and United States National responded by augmenting its consumer credit department with a branch consumer credit department in 1949.

The new holding company quickly grew by acquiring other banks in the four-state region before the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956 prohibited such actions.

The company's installment loan system was initially brought in during 1959 and was still in use.

First Bank’s customer information system dated back to 1964, without the benefit of any update since that time.

In 1902, it merged with Ainsworth National Bank of Portland, but kept the United States National Bank name. It changed its name to the United States National Bank of Oregon in 1964.

By 1965 the bank operated 100 branches across the state, a considerable presence that the bank’s directors had acknowledged the previous year by changing the bank’s name from United States National Bank of Portland to United States National Bank of Oregon.

First Bank Stock Corporation was renamed First Bank System Inc. in 1968.

Decidedly acquisitive throughout the 1980s, the holding company started the decade by establishing The Bank of Milwaukee, a state-chartered bank, in 1980, making United States Bancorp a multi-bank holding company.

Confederation management recognized the need for more centralized control and in 1982 began to prepare a comprehensive strategy for this purpose.

A major change in the organization of leadership in the United States Bancorp of Oregon occurred in August 1983.

In 1985, First Bank management made its first significant decision by selling 28 smaller, rural banks with little prospect for future growth.

In April 1988, United States Bancorp of Oregon announced the pending acquisition of the Bellingham, Washington-based Northwestern Commercial Bank for $15.5 million.

In October 1989, United States Bancorp of Oregon announced the pending acquisition of the Sacramento, California-based Mother Lode Savings Bank with three branch offices for $5.3 million.

With decreasing capital levels resulting from the securities and bond losses, rising noninterest costs, an increasing amount of nonperforming assets, and weakening profitability, the company announced a comprehensive reorganization strategy in late 1989.

The acquisition was completed in August 1990.

The acquisition was completed in March 1991 for $118 million.

After receiving Federal approval, First National was finally moved in February 1992 and renamed United States Bank of Idaho.

Prior to this, it had purchased the California corporate trust subsidiary of Bankers Trust New York Corporation in 1992.

By 1992, a customer could walk into any of First Bank’s affiliates in the Twin Cities area and get a cashier’s check or automobile loan within ten minutes.

With $19 billion in assets in 1992, the company ranked as the 32nd-largest bank in the United States.

Since that time in 1992, banking has undergone many transformations.

Another major change in the organization of leadership in the United States Bancorp of Oregon occurred in January 1993.

In January 1994, Gerry Cameron was first appointed chief operating officer as a replacement to Jensen and later appointed chief executive officer just three weeks later.

Kelly submitted his resignation as president in March 1994 and Breezley finally gave up the chairmanship to Cameron in April 1994.

In May 1994, the company confirmed its acquisition of Metropolitan Financial Corporation for approximately $800 million.

The acquisition was completed in May 1997.

Nelson was originally in line to be Gerry B. Cameron's successor as chairman and chief executive upon the Cameron's planned retirement on New Year's Day 1999.

In June 2000, United States Bancorp announced the acquisition of the San Diego-based Scripps Financial Corporation with its nine-branch office Scripps Bank subsidiary for $155 million in stock.

Still, the company’s stock continued to sag, and during the first half of 2000 its stock price fell 11 percent.

The merger was completed on February 27, 2001.

It is the bank's biggest deal since 2001 when it merged with Milwaukee-based Firstar Corp. for $21 billion.

The acquisition was completed in November 2002.

The acquisition was completed in February 2007 and nearly double the branch presence of United States Bank in Montana.

After Grundhofer retirement in December 2007, Davis added the position of chairman to his other titles of president and chief executive officer.

On November 14, 2008, the United States Treasury invested $6,599,000,000 in preferred stock and warrants in the company via the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008.

In 2008, the United States began to experience the impacts of the greatest economic downturn since the Great Depression.

On June 17, 2009, the company redeemed the $6.6 billion of preferred stock and on July 15, 2009, it completed the purchase of a warrant held by the United States Treasury Department.

Although the current pandemic and the Great Recession of 2009 are still very fresh in our minds, it makes sense to start at the beginning.

In 2009, Institutional Investor magazine ranked it ‘America’s Most Shareholder Friendly’ company in the financial institutions category.

The acquisition was completed in January 2010.

US Bank has been enlisted in the Fortune 500 list of companies in 2010.

In January 2011, United States Bancorp acquired the assets and deposits of the failed First Community Bank of New Mexico in a transaction facilitated by the FDIC for an asset discount of approximately $380 million.

In January 2012, the company acquired the assets and deposits of the failed Knoxville, Tennessee-based BankEast in a transaction facilitated by the FDIC for an asset discount of approximately $67.5 million.

In January 2014, United States Bancorp announced the pending acquisition of 94 branch offices of the Charter One Bank in Chicago from the RBS Citizens Financial Group for $315 million, doubling its market share in Chicago.

In January 2015, chief financial officer Andrew Cecere was promoted to chief operating officer.

In January 2017, United States Bancorp announced that chairman and CEO Richard Davis was going to hand over his CEO position to president and COO Andrew Cecere in April 2017 while still remaining chairman of the corporation.

Davis officially retired from the company in April 2018 and handed over the chairmanship position to Cecere.

In September 2018, Fiserv announced that it would acquire MoneyPass from US Bancorp for $690 million.

Our response by the end of 2020 included a $20 million premium pay program for our employees, relief assistance and 108,000 Small Business Administration Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans for our customers, and $30 million in expedited charitable contributions for our communities.

By 2020, United States Bancorp had organically become Ohio's largest bank by deposits despite not having a presence in the Youngstown and Toledo markets and ahead of major banks based in Ohio (Huntington, Fifth Third Bank & KeyBank), PNC Bank, and Chase Bank.

On September 21, 2021, United States Bancorp agreed to purchase MUFG Union Bank's consumer business for $8 billon.

Minneapolis, MN