Halifax (United Kingdom Bank)

Halifax (United Kingdom Bank)

Halifax is a banking chain in the United Kingdom and a division of Bank of Scotland, itself a wholly owned subsidiary of Lloyds Banking Group. It is the UK's largest provider of residential mortgages and savings accounts. It is named after the town of Halifax, West Yorkshire where it was founded as a building society in 1853. Its slogan is "A Little Extra Help".

Halifax Building Society developed into the UK's largest building society by 1913. It de-mutualised in 1997 becoming Halifax plc, which was a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. In 2001 Halifax plc merged with The Governor and Company of the Bank of Scotland, forming HBOS. In 2006, the HBOS Group Reorganisation Act 2006 legally transferred the assets and liabilities of the Halifax chain to Bank of Scotland which became a standard plc, with Halifax becoming a division of Bank of Scotland. A takeover of HBOS by Lloyds TSB was approved by the Court of Session on 12 January 2009, and on 19 January 2009 Bank of Scotland - including Halifax - formally became part of Lloyds Banking Group.

On 16 October 2009, Halifax Estate Agency was sold to LSL Properties for a fee of £1. The branches were renamed as one of LSL's existing brands, Reeds Rains.