Standard Chartered PLC, known as STAN on the London Stock Exchange (LSE), is a British multinational bank with a rich history. The company was formed on November 18, 1969, through the merger of two separate banks – The Standard Bank of British South Africa and the Chartered Bank of India, Australia, and China.
The Chartered Bank was founded by James Wilson following the grant of a royal charter by Queen Victoria in 1853. It opened its first branches in Mumbai, Kolkata, and Shanghai in 1858. The Standard Bank was founded in the Cape Province of South Africa in 1862. It financed the development of the Kimberley diamond fields from 1867 and extended its network to Johannesburg when gold was discovered there in 1885.
Today, Standard Chartered operates in consumer, corporate, and institutional banking, and treasury services. Despite being headquartered in the United Kingdom, it does not conduct retail banking in the UK, and around 90% of its profits come from Asia, Africa, and the Middle East.
Standard Chartered share price listed 83p in 1988.