Julimye at 15:45, 22 November 2025

2025-11-22T15:45:37Z

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This '''list of the oldest banks in Indian subcontinent''' includes financial institutions that were founded in the 18th and 19th centuries. Listed are the forty oldest banks in India, which includes all financial institutions founded prior to 1850.

The oldest bank in India is [[The Madras Bank (1683)]], followed by the [[Bank of Bombay (1720)|Bank of Bombay]], founded in 1720, which is then followed by the [[Bank of Hindustan]], founded in 1770.

[[Imperial Bank of India]] was succeeded by [[State Bank of India]] in 1955 and [[State Bank of Pakistan]] in 1948 respectively whose origins can be traced back to the [[Bank of Calcutta]]. It was founded in 1806, though the tenth to be founded.<ref name="EB">{{Cite web|url=https://groww.in/blog/the-evolution-of-banking-in-India/|title=The Evolution of Banking in India|date=3 December 2018|access-date=23 May 2021|archive-date=23 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210523130109/https://groww.in/blog/the-evolution-of-banking-in-India/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="IC">{{Cite web |url=https://www.sbp.org.pk/70/his.asp#:~:text=From%20July%201%2C%201948%2C%20the,with%20National%20Bank%20of%20Pakistan. |title=Issuing Currency Notes & Rehabilitation of the Banking System |date=2016}}</ref>

{|class="wikitable sortable"
! Rank !! Name of bank !! Year of founding !! Year of closing !! Present status !! Headquartered in !! References<ref name="Forbes 2015">{{cite web|title=The World's Biggest Employers|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/niallmccarthy/2015/06/23/the-worlds-biggest-employers-infographic/|website=[[Forbes]]|access-date=31 July 2015|archive-date=26 June 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150626010436/https://www.forbes.com/sites/niallmccarthy/2015/06/23/the-worlds-biggest-employers-infographic/|url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
| 1 || [[The Madras Bank (1683)]] || 1683 || 1843 || Merged to form [[Bank of Madras]], presently the [[State Bank of India]] || [[Madras Presidency]] || <ref name="RB">{{Cite web|url=https://rbi.org.in/scripts/ms_banks.aspx|title=Reserve Bank of India - Museum|website=rbi.org.in|access-date=22 May 2021|archive-date=20 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211020132511/https://rbi.org.in/scripts/ms_banks.aspx|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="IC" /><ref name="gbooks shriv">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Y0o8GRVjunUC&dq=The+%22Bank+of+Mirzapore%22+1835&pg=PA24|title=Banking Reforms and Globalisation|isbn=9788131301593|last1=Shrivastava|first1=Mohan Prasad|year=2007|publisher=APH |access-date=10 April 2022|archive-date=2 August 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230802002112/https://books.google.com/books?id=Y0o8GRVjunUC&dq=The+%22Bank+of+Mirzapore%22+1835&pg=PA24|url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
| 2 || [[Bank of Bombay (1720)|Bank of Bombay]] || 1720 || 1770 || Defunct || [[Bombay]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 3 || [[Bank of Hindostan|Bank of Hindustan]] || 1770 || 1832 || Defunct|| [[Calcutta]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 4 || [[General Bank of Bengal and Bihar]] || 1773 || 1775 || Defunct || [[Calcutta]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 5 || [[Bengal Bank (1784)|Bengal Bank]] || 1784 || 1791 || Defunct || [[Calcutta]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 6 || [[General Bank of India]] || 1786 || 1791 || Defunct || [[Calcutta]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 7 || [[Carnatic Bank (1788)|Carnatic Bank]] || 1788 || 1843 || Merged to form [[Bank of Madras]], presently the [[State Bank of India]] || [[Madras Presidency]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 8 || [[The British Bank of Madras (1795)|British Bank of Madras]] || 1795 || 1843 || Merged to form [[Bank of Madras]], presently the [[State Bank of India]] || [[Madras Presidency]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 9 || [[The Asiatic Bank|The Asiatic Bank (1804)]] || 1804 || 1843 || Merged to form [[Bank of Madras]], presently the [[State Bank of India]] || [[Madras Presidency]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 10 || [[Bank of Calcutta]] || 1806 || 1921|| Merged with the [[Imperial Bank of India]], presently the [[State Bank of India]] || [[Calcutta]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 11 || [[The Commercial Bank (1819)|The Commercial Bank]] || 1819 || 1828 || Merged with [[The Calcutta Bank (1824)|The Calcutta Bank]] to form [[The Union Bank (1828)|The Union Bank]] || [[Calcutta]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 12 || [[The Calcutta Bank (1824)|The Calcutta Bank]] || 1824 || 1828 || Merged with [[The Commercial Bank (1819)|The Commercial Bank]] to form [[The Union Bank (1828)|The Union Bank]] || [[Calcutta]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 13 || [[The Bank of India (1828)|The Bank of India]]|| 1828 || 1829 || Defunct || [[Calcutta]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 14 || [[The Union Bank (1828)|The Union Bank]] || 1828 || 1848 || Defunct || [[Calcutta]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 15 || [[The Government Savings Bank (1833)|The Government Savings Bank]] || 1833|| 1843 || Defunct || [[Calcutta]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 16 || [[Agra Bank|The Agra & United Service Bank]] || 1833 || 1866 || Defunct || [[Agra]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 17 || [[The Bank of Mirzapore (1835)|The Bank of Mirzapore]] || 1835 || 1837 || Defunct || [[Mirzapur]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 18 || Bank of India (London) || 1836 || 1836|| Defunct || [[Calcutta]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 19 || [[The North Western Bank of India]] || 1840 || 1859|| Defunct || [[Mussoorie]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 20 || [[Bank of Bombay]] || 1840 || 1921 || Merged with the [[Imperial Bank of India]], presently the [[State Bank of India]] || [[Bombay]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 21 || Bank of Asia || 1841 || 1842 || Defunct || [[London]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 22 || The Bank of Ceylon || 1841 || 1849 || Merged with the [[Oriental Bank Corporation]] || [[Colombo]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 23 || The East India Bank (1842) || 1842 || 1842 || Defunct || [[London]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 24 || The [[Oriental Bank Corporation]] || 1842 || 1884 || Defunct || [[Bombay]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 25 || [[The Agra Savings Fund]] || 1842 || 1863 || Defunct || [[Agra]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 26 || The [[Bank of Madras]] || 1843 || 1921 || Merged with the [[Imperial Bank of India]], presently the [[State Bank of India]] || [[Madras Presidency]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 27 || [[Delhi Bank Corporation]] || 1844 || 1916 || Merged with the [[Alliance Bank of Simla]] || [[Delhi]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 28 || [[The Benares Bank]] || 1844 || 1850 || Defunct || [[Benares]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 29 || [[The Simla Bank Limited]] || 1844 || 1893 || Defunct || [[Shimla]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 30 || The [[Commercial Bank of India]] || 1845 || 1866 || Defunct || [[Bombay]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 31 || [[The Cawnpore Bank]] || 1845 || 1852 || Defunct || [[Kanpur]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 32 || [[The Dacca Bank (1846)|The Dacca Bank]] || 1846 || 1862 || Merged with the [[Bank of Bengal]], presently [[State Bank of India]] || [[Dhaka]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 33 || The London Bank of Australia and India || 1852 || 1852 || Defunct || [[Agra]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 34 || [[Chartered Bank of Asia]] || 1852 || 1855 || Defunct || [[London]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 35 || [[Mercantile Bank of India, London and China|Chartered Mercantile Bank of India, London & China]] || 1853 || 1853 || Defunct || [[London]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 36 || [[Chartered Bank of India, Australia and China]] || 1853 || 1853 || Defunct || [[London]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 37 || [[The London and Eastern Banking Corporation]] || 1854 || 1857 || Defunct || [[London]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />
|-
| 38 || [[Comptoir national d'escompte de Paris|The Comptoir D'Escompte of Paris]] || 1854 || 1854 || Defunct || [[Paris]] || <ref name="IC" /><ref name="RB" /><ref name="gbooks shriv" />

|}

== Locations of headquarters ==

The below cities are frequently listed among the headquarters of the banks mentioned in the above table.

{|class="wikitable sortable"
! Rank !! Name of city !! Number of ancient banks headquartered
|-
| 1 || [[Calcutta]] || 11
|-
| 2 || [[London]] || 6
|-
| 3 || [[Madras]] || 5
|-
| 4 || [[Bombay]] || 4
|-
| 5 || [[Agra]] || 3
|}

==See also==
* [[History of banking]]
* [[Banking in India]]
* [[List of oldest companies]]
* [[List of oldest companies in India]]
* [[Lindy effect]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==

* [https://currentaffairs.adda247.com/oldest-bank-of-india/ Oldest Banks List]
* [https://rbi.org.in/scripts/ms_banks.aspx List maintained by the Reserve Bank of India]
* [https://groww.in/blog/the-evolution-of-banking-in-india/ Evolution of Banking in India]
* [https://archive.org/details/riseprogressand00cookgoog Charles Northcote Cooke]
* [https://www.businessmanagementideas.com/banking/evolution-of-banking/list-of-4-banks-in-india-before-independence/5336 History of Banking in India]

{{Banking in India}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:India oldest banks}}
[[Category:Financial history of India]]
[[Category:Lists of banks in India|Oldest]]
[[Category:Economy-related lists of superlatives]]
[[Category:Lists of longest-duration things|Banks]]
[[Category:History of banking]]

List of oldest banks in India - Revision history

Julimye at 15:45, 22 November 2025