1900.E2.80.931939 Swiss Bank Corporation

the st. gallen, switzerland, offices of swiss bank corporation c.1920

sbc continued grow in decades of 20th century, acquiring weaker rivals. in 1906, sbc purchased banque d espine, fatio & cie, establishing branch in geneva, switzerland, first time. 2 years later, in 1908, bank acquired fratelli pasquali, bank in chiasso, switzerland, first representation in italian-speaking portion of country. followed 1909 acquisition of bank für appenzell (est. 1866) , 1912 acquisition of banque d escompte et de dépots.

the onset of world war put hold on of bank s development. although sbc survived war intact, suffered loss of investments in number of large industrial companies. nevertheless, bank surpassed chf1 billion first time @ end of 1918 , grew 2,000 employees 1920. in 1918, sbc purchased métaux précieux sa métalor refine precious metals , produce bank ingots. company established separate subsidiary in 1936 , spun off in 1998. impact of stock market crash of 1929 , great depression severe, particularly swiss franc suffered major devaluation in 1936. bank see assets fall 1929 peak of chf1.6 billion 1918 levels of chf1 billion 1936.

in 1937, sbc adopted 3 keys logo symbolizing confidence, security , discretion. logo designed swiss artist , illustrator, warja honegger-lavater.