Lloyds Banking Group

The business
Lloyds Banking Group is a major British financial institution, formed through the acquisition of HBOS by Lloyds TSB in 2009. As at February 2010, HM Treasury held a 41% shareholding through UK Financial Investments Limited. Lloyds Banking Group's activities are organised into four business divisions: Retail Banking (including Mortgages), Wholesale, Life, Pensions & Insurance, and Wealth & International. Lloyds' extensive operations span the globe including the US, Europe, Middle East and Asia. Following the takeover, the HBOS name ceased to be used publicly. The Halifax brand, products and pricing has been discontinued in Scotland, where only the Bank of Scotland brand remains of the former HBOS businesses. This resulted in a number of Halifax customers being transferred to Bank of Scotland. The Halifax and Lloyds Bank brands will be used in England and Wales, with each offering different products and pricing.

The history
Lloyds TSB was created in 1995, when the Lloyds Bank and the Trustee Savings Bank ("TSB") agreed to merge, creating at that time the second-largest bank in the UK by market capitalisation after HSBC Holdings; and the largest by market share. With a history dating to the 17th century, Bank of Scotland is the oldest surviving bank, after the Bank of England, in what is now the United Kingdom. In 2001, a wave of consolidation in the UK banking market led the former Halifax Building Society, which traces its roots to 1853, to agree a £10.8 billion merger with the Bank of Scotland; Halifax is now used as brand for its the Bank's branches in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and for savings and mortgages in Scotland.

The leader
In his first interview as Lloyds Banking Group's new CEO António Mota de Sousa Horta Osório told The Banker that "We will keep the different brands because the customers are very different in terms of attitude".

The outlook
The group is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. It had a market capitalization of approximately £17.7 billion as of 23 December 2011, making it the 23rd-largest company on the London Stock Exchange.

Lloyds Banking Group