The Co-operative Bank

The Co-operative Bank p.l.c.

The bank's headquarters on Balloon Street, Manchester
Formerly	CWS Loan and Deposit Dept.[citation needed] Co-operative Bank Public Limited Company (1970–1993)[1]
Company type	Public limited company
Industry	Banking & finance
Founded	8 November 1872; 152 years ago (1872-11-08)[citation needed] 5 October 1970; 54 years ago (1970-10-05) (incorporated as Co-operative Bank Public Limited Company)[1]
Headquarters	Manchester, England, UK
Number of locations	50 (2024)
Key people	Nick Slape (Chief Executive Officer) Bob Dench (Chairman)
Products	Commercial banking Credit cards Loans Mortgage loans Retail banking
Operating income	£71m (2023) £133m (2022)
Total assets	£26bn (2023) £28bn (2022)
Owner	Coventry Building Society
Number of employees	3,350 (2019)[2]
Divisions	Smile
Website	www.co-operativebank.co.uk
Footnotes / references [3]

The Co-operative Bank p.l.c.^[1] is a British retail and commercial bank based in Manchester, England. Established as a bank for co-operators and co-operatives following the principles of the Rochdale Pioneers, the business evolved in the 20th century into a mid-sized British high street bank, operating throughout the UK mainland. Transactions took place at cash desks in Co-op stores until the 1960s, when the bank set up a small network of branches that grew from six to a high of 160; in 2023 it had 50 branches.

The Co-operative Bank is the only UK high street bank with a customer-led ethical policy which is incorporated into the bank's articles of association. The policy was introduced in 1992 and incorporated into the bank's constitution in 2013, then revised and expanded in 2015 in line with over 320,000 customer responses to a poll.

Despite its name, the bank has never been a cooperative itself. In the 1970s it was registered as a separate PLC that was wholly owned by the co-operative society it was part of, in order to achieve its status as a bank among other banks entitled to use inter-banking systems. That society, The Co-operative Group, maintains some relationship with the bank, including managing the licensed use of the Co-operative brand.^{[citation needed]}

In 2013–2014, after a merger with Leek-based Britannia Building Society, a failed attempt to buy a larger rival and a troubled commercial property loan portfolio, the bank was the subject of a rescue plan to address a capital shortfall of about £1.9 billion. The Co-operative Group, which had previously owned the bank outright, became a minority shareholder with a 20% stake. Following restructuring and the formation of a new holding company on 1 September 2017, the Co-operative Group no longer had a stake in the bank and the relationship agreement between the two organisations ended in 2020.

In May 2024, Coventry Building Society agreed to purchase The Co-operative Bank. Regulatory approval was granted in November 2024 and the acquisition completed on 1 January 2025.