https://indianpedia.org/index.php?action=history&feed=atom&title=Bank_of_CalcuttaBank of Calcutta - Revision history2026-07-30T14:17:49ZRevision history for this page on the wikiMediaWiki 1.45.4https://indianpedia.org/index.php?title=Bank_of_Calcutta&diff=187105&oldid=prev>Billjones94 at 15:32, 2 October 20212021-10-02T15:32:36Z<p></p>
<p><b>New page</b></p><div>{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2015}}<br />
{{Use Indian English|date=November 2015}}<br />
{{Infobox company<br />
| name = Bank of Bengal<br />
| logo = <br />
| logo_caption = <br />
| former_name = Bank of Calcutta<br />
| type = <br />
| industry = [[Banking]], [[financial services]] <br />
| fate = Merged with [[Bank of Bombay]] and [[Bank of Madras]]<br />
| successor = [[Imperial Bank of India]]<br />
| foundation = {{start date and age|2 June 1806|df=yes}}<br />
| defunct = {{end date and age|27 January 1921|df=yes}}<br />
| founder = <br />
| location_city = [[Calcutta]], [[Bengal Presidency]]<br />
| location_country = [[British India]]<br />
| area_served = [[British India]]<br />
| products = <br />
| parent = <br />
| subsid = <br />
| homepage = <br />
}}<br />
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[[File:Bank of Bengal 1876.jpg|thumbnail|Share of the Bank of Bengal, issued on 13 May 1876.]]<br />
The '''Bank of Calcutta''' (a precursor to the present [[State Bank of India]]) was founded on 2 June 1806, mainly to fund [[Richard Wellesley, 1st Marquess Wellesley|General Wellesley]]'s wars against [[Tipu Sultan]] and the [[Maratha]]s. It was the first bank of India and was renamed '''Bank of Bengal''' on 2 January 1809.<br />
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==History==<br />
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[[File:Burma Bill of Exchange Akyab 1886.JPG|thumbnail|A [[bill of exchange]] processed by the Bank of Bengal, 1886.]]<br />
The bank opened branches at [[Yangon|Rangoon]] (1861), [[Patna]] (1862), [[Mirzapur]] (1862), and [[Varanasi|Benares]] (1862). When it became known that the bank intended to open a branch at [[Dhaka|Dacca]], negotiations began that resulted in Bank of Bengal in 1862 amalgamating Dacca Bank (est. 1846).<ref>''Banker's Magazine'', Vol. 22, p.565-6.</ref> A branch at Cawnpore followed.<br />
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Among the bank's renowned customers were, scholar and politician [[Dadabhai Naoroji]], scientist [[Jagadish Chandra Bose]], India’s first President Rajendra Prasad, Nobel laureate [[Rabindranath Tagore]] and educationist [[Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=A walk down history when India banked on Calcutta|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/a-walk-down-history-when-india-banked-on-calcutta/articleshow/73103013.cms|date=January 5, 2020|website=The Times of India|language=en|access-date=2020-05-26}}</ref><br />
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The bank was risk averse and would not lend for more than three months, leading to local businessmen, both British and Indian launching private banks which resulted in more bank failures. The most storied bank failure was Union Bank Limited (1829-1848) founded by [[Dwarkanath Tagore|Dwarakanath Tagore]] in partnership with British companies.<ref>{{Cite web|title=The chequered history of Kolkata’s banks|url=https://www.livemint.com/Sundayapp/h1fOdMncOKOZ3TPUMvEYMN/The-chequered-history-of-Kolkatas-banks.html|last=Paul|first=Aniek|date=2015-08-22|website=Livemint|language=en|access-date=2020-05-26}}</ref><br />
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The Bank of Calcutta, and the two other Presidency banks — the [[Bank of Bombay]] and the [[Bank of Madras]] — amalgamated on 27 January 1921 and the reorganized banking entity assumed the name [[Imperial Bank of India]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.getbengal.com/details/bank-of-calcutta-oldest-bank-of-asia-never-failed|title=Bank of Calcutta, oldest bank of Asia never failed!|website=Get Bengal|access-date=2 October 2021}}</ref> The [[Reserve Bank of India]], which is the central banking organization of India, in the year 1955, acquired a controlling interest in the Imperial Bank of India and the Imperial Bank of India was renamed on 30 April 1955 as the State Bank of India.<br />
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==See also==<br />
* [[Banking in India]]<br />
* [[History of banking]]<br />
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==Citations and references==<br />
'''Citations'''<br />
{{Reflist|30em}}<br />
'''References'''<br />
*{{cite news|url=http://www.tribuneindia.com/2005/20050626/spectrum/main1.htm |title=200 years and going strong|newspaper= [[The Tribune (Chandigarh)|The Tribune]]|access-date= 2006-09-08}}<br />
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==Further reading==<br />
*{{cite book|title=The Evolution of the State Bank of India|volume= 1 — The Roots 1806-1876|author=Amiya Kumar Bagchi |url=http://www.hindu.com/br/2007/04/03/stories/2007040300301600.htm|publisher=hindu.com}}<br />
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{{Banking in India}}<br />
{{SBI}}<br />
{{Authority control}}<br />
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[[Category:1806 establishments in British India]]<br />
[[Category:1861 establishments in Burma]]<br />
[[Category:1861 establishments in the British Empire]]<br />
[[Category:19th century in Kolkata]]<br />
[[Category:Banks established in 1806]]<br />
[[Category:Banks disestablished in 1921]]<br />
[[Category:Banks based in Kolkata]]<br />
[[Category:Defunct banks of India|Calcutta]]<br />
[[Category:History of Kolkata]]<br />
[[Category:History of West Bengal]]<br />
[[Category:History of Bengal]]<br />
[[Category:Indian companies established in 1806]]<br />
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