Banc One Insurance Group history

The bank began declaring quarterly dividends to customers at mid-year in 1882.

In 1899 the bank was the first American bank to establish a formal pension plan, a clear indication of its employee-oriented management style.

At the turn of the century, the industrial revolution created an unprecedented demand for credit. It combined with the Metropolitan National Bank in 1902 and raised its assets to $100 million.

In 1903 the First opened the First Trust and Savings Bank, a separate corporation to serve the non-commercial members of the community.

The First celebrated its 50th anniversary in 1913 by becoming a charter member of the Federal Reserve system.

During the Depression that followed the 1929 stock market crash, the First's sound financial base kept it from failing as 11,000 weaker banks did.

When the Securities and Exchange Commission was established in 1934, fears of a second crash dissipated.

In 1944 President Roosevelt chose the First's president, Edward Eagle Brown, to be the only American banker to serve at the United Nations Monetary and Finance Conference that met at Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, to sketch plans for the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.

When John H. McCoy suffered a fifth heart attack and died in November 1958, CNB was still ranked third among the banks in Columbus.

In 1959 the First opened a London office to improve its service to foreign correspondent banks and customers engaged in international trade.

At his and McCoy's instigation, CNB became the first bank outside of California to market Bankamericard (which later became Visa) in 1966, beginning a very profitable credit card processing sideline.

Unfortunately, this program produced one of the worst loan portfolios in the industry: in 1976 the bank's percentage of non-performing loans reached a high of 11 percent--twice the national average.

In 1978 Abboud more than doubled the bank's Eurodollar commitment, to $6.7 billion, from $3.1 billion the year before.

By 1980 Abboud had brought non-performing loans down six percent.

The corporation's assets passed the $5 billion mark in 1982, as barriers to interstate branching continued to deteriorate.

In October 1984, the comptroller of the currency examined First Chicago's loan portfolio.

Federal and state banking regulations changed dramatically in September 1985, enabling Banc One to enter its first agreement with a banking organization outside of Ohio.

What the banking industry feared most, happened in 1987: Third World countries suspended interest payments on their loans.

First Chicago posted a $15.1 million loss during the fourth quarter of 1991 for problem loans and expense-cutting costs.

McCoy's progeny carried on that legacy: net interest margins still ranked among the highest in the business in 1992.

Thomas retired in May 1996, leaving command of the new bank to NBD Bancorp's chairman and CEO, Verne G. Istock.

By 1997 Banc One was the tenth largest bank in the nation, with more than $90 billion in assets and more than 1,500 offices spread across 13 states, mostly in the Midwest and Southwest.

In April 1998 Banc One and First Chicago NBD announced plans to merge their operations in an estimated $30 billion deal.