A Tradition of Growth

The twentieth century was a time of growth and expansion for both companies.

At the turn of the century, The Bank of New York was actively increasing its international client portfolio and expanding its foreign exchange business. Mellon was close behind, forming in 1904 a foreign bureau to provide banking services for customer activity outside the United States.

After the end of World War I, The Bank of New York and Mellon each embarked on a tradition of employing mergers and acquisitions as a springboard to growth.

In July 1922, The Bank of New York merged with the New York Life Insurance and Trust Company, expanding the Bank's capital structure and adding a well-established trust business.

By that time, Mellon had grown to a point where it had only one serious competitor — the company that now owned it, Union Trust, which was also controlled by the Mellon family. The two companies finally merged in 1946, creating a bank with the size, scale and expertise to compete with the nation's largest banks.

For Mellon and The Bank of New York, other mergers followed, helping each company strengthen its capital base, build its client base and grow its product offering.