FIFTH THIRD BANK

'Fifth Third Bank' ('5/3 Bank') () is a U.S. regional banking corporation, headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio.
The Company has $101 billion in assets, operates 18 affiliates with 1,169 full-service Banking Centers, including 109 Bank Mart® locations open seven days a week inside select grocery stores and 2,134 ATMs in Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Florida, Tennessee, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Missouri, Georgia, and North Carolina.
Fifth Third is among the largest money managers in the Midwest and, as of June 30, 2007, has $232 billion in assets under care, of which it managed $34 billion for individuals, corporations and not-for-profit organizations. ^[4]
The company engages in five main businesses: Branch Banking, Consumer Lending, Commercial Banking, Investment Advisors, and Fifth Third Processing Solutions.

Contents

History

Name

Fifth Third in the news

Recent acquisitions

See also

References

External links

History

Fifth Third Bank's history can be traced back to June 17, 1858, when the Bank of the Ohio Valley opened in Cincinnati. The Third National Bank organized five years later, on June 23, 1863, and on April 29, 1871, the younger bank acquired the older one, beginning a 130-year history of banking acquisitions and mergers, with numerous smaller banks being absorbed and renamed.^[5]

Name

Fifth Third's unusual name is the result of the June 1, 1908 merger of two banks, The Fifth National Bank and The Third National Bank, to become The Fifth Third National Bank of Cincinnati.⁵ Because the merger took place during a period when prohibitionist ideas were gaining popularity, it was believed that "Fifth Third" was better than "Third Fifth," which could be construed as a reference to three "fifths" of alcohol.^[6] The name went through several changes over the years, until on March 24, 1969, the name was changed to Fifth Third Bank. ⁵

Fifth Third in the news

In January 2007, the New York Times published an article "Data Breach Could Affect Millions". "Yesterday, Fifth Third Bank of Cincinnati was identified as the sponsoring bank that handles TJX’s accounts, which makes it responsible for ensuring that the retailer met the industry’s data security standards."^[7] It was later found that potentially 45.7 million credit card numbers were compromised. This, from the Associated Press, "TJX says its computer systems were first breached in July 2005 by a hacker or hackers who accessed information from customer transactions dating to January 2003. TJX says it didn’t find out about the breach until about three months ago.....The filing also says, “We believe that the intruder had access to the decryption tool for the encryption software utilized by TJX.”^[8]
=== Use by phishing scams ===
Fifth Third Bank's brand, name, and logo have been frequently exploited by phishing scam emails. Computer security company McAfee reports on their website that, at the beginning of September 2006, over 33% of phishing scam emails being reported to McAfee were using Fifth Third Bank's brand.^[9]

Recent acquisitions

In May 2007, Fifth Third announced the acquisition of R-G Crown Bank of Casselberry, FL. This purchase will add thirty branches in Florida and three in Georgia to Fifth Third's branch network. The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2007.^[10]
On August 16, 2007 Fifth Third announced the purchase of First Charter Bank of Charlotte, NC. As part of this transaction, Fifth Third will enter the North Carolina market with 57 branches, and the Atlanta market with two branches. The transaction is expected to be finalized in the first quarter of 2008.^[10]

See also

★ Fifth Third Field, the name of two baseball stadiums in Ohio bearing the bank's name due to separate naming rights arrangements, one in Dayton and one in Toledo

★ Fifth Third Ballpark, another baseball stadium bearing the bank's name, in Comstock Park, Michigan

★ Fifth Third Arena, an indoor arena bearing the bank's name on the campus of the University of Cincinnati, used by that school's basketball program

References

1. Fortune 500 2007: Fifth Third Bancorp
2. "Fortune 500 2007: Fifth Third Bancorp"
3. Fifth Third Bancorp Annual Report 2006 (PDF)
4. Fifth Third Bancorp Form 10-Q for March 31, 2007 (PDF))
5. Fifth Third Bank History and Expansion (PDF)
6. The Straight Dope: What gives with Fifth Third Bank?
7. Data Breach Could Affect Millions
8. T.J. Maxx data theft worse than first reported
9. Top 10 Phish Scams
10.
11.

External links

★ Fifth Third Bank