Where Is The Headquarters Of The Bank of Nova Scotia Located?
The Bank of Nova Scotia, which operates as Scotiabank, is a Canadian multinational bank and the third biggest in the country by market capitalization and deposits. The bank serves over 25 million customers worldwide and offers a wide range of services and products including personal and commercial banking, wealth management, and investment and corporate banking. The Bank of Nova Scotia has billed itself as "Canada's most international bank" as a result of its acquisitions in the Caribbean, Latin America, parts of Asia, and Europe. Scotiabank was a member of the London Bullion Market Association through one of its subsidiaries, ScotiaMocatta, until January 2019, when it was dissolved. Scotiabank trades on both the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) and the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). The bank had more than 88,000 employees in 2018.
Headquarters Of Bank Of Nova Scotia
The Bank of Nova Scotia was founded in 1832 and was initially based in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Halifax was the home of the bank’s headquarters until 1900 when it was moved to Toronto, Ontario, where it currently remains. The bank’s corporate offices are located in Scotia Plaza, at 44 King Street West in Toronto, which is Canada's most populous city, as well as Ontario's provincial capital. Completed in 1988, Scotia Plaza has 68 floors, 44 elevators, and contains 1,600,140 sq ft of floor area. Toronto is considered a global center of culture, arts, finance, and business, as well as one of the world’s most cosmopolitan and multicultural cities.
Incorporation And Growth
Scotiabank was incorporated in Halifax in 1832 by Nova Scotia’s Legislative Assembly, and Lawson William served as the bank's first president. Scotiabank intended to facilitate trans-Atlantic trade, and the bank’s first acquisition was the Union Bank of Prince Edward Island in 1883. The bank opened its first branch in Windsor, Nova Scotia, and its growth was initially limited to the Maritimes until a branch was opened in Winnipeg, Manitoba, in 1882, and established itself in Newfoundland in 1894. Scotiabank became the first Canadian bank to open a branch outside of the United Kingdom (UK) or the United States (US) in 1889 when it expanded to Kingston, Jamaica, to facilitate the fish, rum, and sugar trade. Scotiabank was well represented in Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, and all Maritime provinces by the end of the nineteenth century.
The bank continued expanding in the twentieth century by opening branches in Puerto Rico (1910), New York City (1907), and Havana, Cuba (1906). Scotiabank also grew through acquisitions and mergers with other banks, such as the Bank of New Brunswick (1913), and became the fourth largest bank in Canada after acquiring the Metropolitan Bank in 1914. The bank operated in Cuba until 1960, when the Cuban government nationalized all financial institutions in the country, causing Scotiabank to close all of its Cuban branches. Scotia Securities was established in 1986 to provide security underwriting and brokerage services. The bank closed its branches in Argentina in 2002 during the country's currency crisis.
Operating Units
The bank has four operating business lines, which have helped it grow into one of the biggest banks in Canada. The Canadian Banking line provides banking and financial advice to business and personal clients in Canada. The Global Wealth and Insurance (GWI) line combines Scotiabank’s insurance and wealth management operations in the country and globally. The International Banking line offers financial advice and products to commercial and retail clients in all areas outside of Canada. The Global Banking & Markets line provides numerous products and services to institutional investors, governments, and corporate clients globally.
