Crédit Commercial de France

Crédit Commercial de France (CCF) was a commercial bank in France, headquartered in Paris, avenue des Champs-Élysées. It became a wholly owned subsidiary of HSBC in April 2000, and was renamed HSBC France on 1 November 2005.

Able to trace its origins in banking as far back as 1858, by the end of the 1920s the bank had grown to be the sixth largest in France.

Ernest Méjà and Benjamin Rossier founded Banque Suisse et Française at 27, rue Laffite, Paris, on 1 July 1894. They had previously worked together for Banque Fédérale S.A. and their new firm began by taking over the business of the Swiss bank’s Paris branch. Méjà remained as joint managing director of the bank with Rossier until his death in 1910. Rossier then continued to run the bank until his retirement in 1936. Both men’s valuable contributions to the French economy were recognised when they were made chevaliers of the Légion d’honneur. In the 80s the board discussed to bring Benjamin Rossier's grand nephew Jacques Rossier into the bank but discussions never materialized and Jacques Rossier became later senior partner of the private bank Hentsch & Cie in Geneva, Switzerland.

From its early days, Banque Suisse et Française took an active interest in commerce and industry. A successful working relationship was developed with the Paris department store Galeries Lafayette. The bank also helped fund the construction of the new Métropolitain underground system and the installation of public lighting in the capital. The early success of the business led to considerable expansion. The number of employees rose tenfold by the turn of the century, and the bank moved to larger headquarters at 20, rue La Fayette. From 1912, the bank began to develop a branch network, with 14 offices opening in Paris and a first provincial office in Lille. An office was also acquired in Marseilles when the business of Banque du Colombier was taken over in 1914.

...
Wikipedia