The Largest Bank In The World
BNP Paribas S.A. is said to be the largest or biggest bank in the world! As far as I can determine, BNP Paribas S.A. has somewhere between 2.95 and 3.12 trillion dollars in assets. The BNP Paribas headquarters are in Paris, France and they employ over 200,000 people worldwide. Like any other bank they offer the regular banking services such as commercial, retail, investments, and deposits. They also offer asset and investment advice and services.
How Did It Become The Biggest Bank In The World?
A man named Louis Bischoffsheim began a private banking business in Amsterdam back in the 1820s. Meanwhile, his brother Jonathan created a branch of the bank, in Antwerp, around the same period of time. After Louis married the daughter of another banker from Frankfurt, named Goldschmidt, Louis Bischoffsheim would establish the Bischoffsheim Goldschmidt bank in Paris and in London by 1860. A few years later he merged these banks with the Banque de Credit et de Depot des Pays Bas, which he had already founded in Amsterdam. After other mergers the combined banks would be called Paribas, up until 1998.
Setting The Stage
Shortly after World War II, France nationalized the Banque de France and 4 other of the largest French banks in France, which included CNEP, BNCI, Societe Generale and Credit Lyonnais. BNCI and CNEP merged in 1966 to form BNP. BNP then became a private bank again in the early 1990's.
Then the two banks, Societe Generale and BNP began to fight a sophisticated battle of acquisition on the stock market, around 1999. Societe Generale began bidding for Paribas while BNP began bidding for Societe Generale while counter bidding on Paribas. BNP's bidding for Societe Generale was unsuccessful, while its bid for Paribas succeeded which led to the eventual merger of BNP and Paribas one year later in 2000.
The original bank (Paribas) that was started, back in the 1820's began with one merge of sorts through a marriage and went through other mergers with it's own banks. Later it would merge with at least one other, all over a hundred and fifty to hundred and seventy year period. Then two other large banks merged in the 60's and later merged with Paribas in 2000. So this one bank is basically the accumulation of several merged banks throughout an almost 200 year history.