Historical Dictionary of the Netherlands

ABN AMRO

ABN AMRO: translation

In 1991, the Algemene Bank Nederland (ABN) merged with the Amsterdamsche-Rotterdamsche Bank (AMRO), forming ABN AMRO
This enterprise has become one of the largest banks in Europe, with branches all over the world. Its main operations are banking, insurance, and property management and leasing. ABN’s roots go back to the Nederlandsche Handel Maatschappij (NHM) of 1824. The Rotterdamsche Bank was founded in 1863, and the Amsterdamsche Bank in 1871; a merger between the two into AMRO, put on hold in 1939 because of the threat of war, was not achieved until 1964. Recently, ABN AMRO has had troubles in the United States because the bank was involved in matters of fraud.