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Familiar red 'M' adorns branch in London
Britain's first new retail bank in more than a century has opened - and it sports a familiar name and logo.
The bright red "M" that identifies Metro Bank's headquarters in Swatara Township also adorns the Metro Bank pic branch that debuted July 29 in central London. Inside the British bank, customers will find services and amenities like those in the more than 30 Metro Bankbranches across central Pennsylvania.
The British Metro Bank pic website is a splashier version of its American cousin. The latter, however, includes the following unambiguous disclaimer: "Metro Bank is a wholly owned subsidiary of Metro Bancorp Inc. and is not affiliated with Metro Bank pic, Great Britain."
That's right, they're not the same bank. But they share the same founder and the same vision.
"Our job is to eliminate every stupid bank rule we can find," American entrepreneur Vernon Hill told the British newspaper The Daily Telegraph in February.
That was Hill's strategy when he founded Commerce Bank in 1973 in Cherry Hill, NJ. Hill, a veteran of the fast-food industry, saw no reason banks couldn't be just as convenient. Commerce Bank stayed open seven days a week and offered free coincounting machines and other perquisites, including complimentary biscuits for customers' dogs.
Commerce Bank grew rapidly, spinning off Commerce Bank of Harrisburg in 1985 as a separate franchise. The latter bank...