Which U.S. bank, founded in 1784, is the oldest continuously operating bank in the country?

The U.S. bank founded in 1784 that is the country’s oldest continuously operating bank is Bank of New York Mellon. Its institutional history begins with the Bank of New York, founded in New York by Alexander Hamilton and other leaders after the American Revolution.

The original bank helped finance the new nation and supported commerce in a financial system that was still developing. It later expanded into trust and custody services, becoming an important institution in securities administration as well as traditional banking.

The present-day corporation took its modern form when The Bank of New York merged with Mellon Financial Corporation in 2007. Thus, “Bank of New York Mellon” refers to the current organization, while the 1784 founding date belongs to its Bank of New York predecessor.

That lineage explains a frequent point of confusion: the answer is sometimes shortened to “the Bank of New York.” The longer name is the current corporate identity, and the continuous-operation claim follows the older institution through its corporate history.