Amalgamated Bank

Amalgamated Bank is an American commercial bank founded in 1923 by the Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America. Created to provide banking services to a labor organization and its members, it developed an unusually close relationship with the U.S. labor movement and remains one of the country’s few unionized banks. Workers United, an affiliate of the Service Employees International Union, is its majority owner. The bank began as Amalgamated Bank of New York and opened to the public on April 14, 1923, in Manhattan. Its initial customer base was closely connected to organized labor, but its activities soon expanded into housing finance and other forms of community-oriented lending. In 1927, it financed the Amalgamated Housing Cooperative in the Bronx, described as the first union-supported housing development in the United States. In 1957, it financed Park Reservoir Housing Cooperative, an early affordable-housing development under New York State’s Mitchell-Lama program. The institution also became known for extending financial support to striking workers, labor organizations, civil-rights groups, and other progressive institutions. Today, Amalgamated Bank provides personal banking, small-business banking, commercial banking, institutional investment, custody, lending, deposits, mortgages, cash management, and payment services. It has specialized expertise serving labor unions, Taft–Hartley benefit plans, nonprofit organizations, political and advocacy groups, and middle-market companies. Through its Institutional Asset Management and Custody Division, the bank provides investment advisory and custodial services to institutional clients. The bank’s customer base has included major labor unions, nonprofit organizations, advocacy groups, and political organizations. Amalgamated operates primarily in the United States. Its physical branch network includes locations in New York City, Washington, D.C., and San Francisco, supplemented by online and mobile banking. Checking customers can also access a large surcharge-free ATM network through Allpoint. The bank’s stated values include responsible investment, labor rights, environmental responsibility, affordable housing, financial inclusion, and support for union-made goods and unionized contractors. The institution expanded through its May 2018 merger with San Francisco-based New Resource Bank. In August 2018, it completed an initial public offering and began trading on Nasdaq under the symbol AMAL. In March 2021, it became the first publicly traded financial-services company organized as a public benefit corporation. As of July 30, 2023, the bank reported approximately $7.8 billion in assets, while its investment advisory and custody activities covered more than $45 billion in assets and services. Those figures are historical snapshots and should be distinguished from current financial results.

Amalgamated Bank was established during the growth of organized labor in the United States. On March 16, 1923, the Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America chartered Amalgamated Bank of New York. The bank opened its doors on April 14, 1923, on East 14th Street in Manhattan, near Union Square. Its founding purpose was to give a major labor organization and its members a dedicated banking institution. Within a short period, approximately 2,400 customers had deposited $450,000, and the bank expanded into additional floors of its original building to accommodate demand. The bank’s early identity was explicitly connected to its union ownership. Its public advertising emphasized that it was owned and operated by the Amalgamated Clothing Workers, and its original directors included prominent labor figures and civic leaders. During the late 1920s, the bank operated a travel department, reflecting the broader range of services that could be offered by a community-oriented financial institution at the time. Housing finance became an important part of the bank’s social and economic role. In 1927, Amalgamated financed the Amalgamated Housing Cooperative in the Bronx, a landmark union-supported housing project. Three decades later, in 1957, it helped finance Park Reservoir Housing Cooperative, identified as the first affordable-housing development created under New York State’s Mitchell-Lama program. These activities established a long-running connection between the bank and affordable-housing development. Amalgamated also developed a reputation for supporting labor disputes and civil-rights organizations. Its historical record includes opening its vaults on a Saturday to provide bail for striking workers, helping the NAACP post a cash bond, and supporting striking Philadelphia teachers in 1973. In 1982, it extended a loan to the striking National Football League Players Association even though the association did not maintain an account with the bank. These episodes reinforced the institution’s image as a financial organization prepared to serve organized labor and social movements during periods when conventional financing might be difficult to obtain. Over time, the bank broadened its customer base beyond unions and their members. It developed personal and small-business banking, commercial lending, mortgages, deposits, cash management, payments, and institutional investment and custody services. Unions, nonprofit organizations, advocacy groups, political organizations, and middle-market companies became important customer segments. Its Institutional Asset Management and Custody Division became a provider of investment advisory and custody services for Taft–Hartley plans. The bank also became active in shareholder advocacy. Its initiatives have addressed independent corporate boards, sweatshop labor, disclosure of political spending, executive severance arrangements, executive-pay clawbacks, environmental and safety performance, and board oversight. It pursued or supported shareholder litigation involving companies including Enron, News Corp, Freeport-McMoRan, and Duke Energy, with settlements and recoveries described in company materials and reference sources. These activities extended the bank’s labor and social-responsibility orientation into corporate governance and capital-market activism. In May 2018, Amalgamated merged with New Resource Bank of San Francisco. Later that year, it conducted an initial public offering and began trading on Nasdaq under the ticker AMAL. The public listing created a conventional shareholder structure while the bank retained majority ownership by Workers United and continued to promote responsible banking. In March 2021, it became a public benefit corporation, making it the first publicly traded financial-services company described as having that status. The modern bank combines a limited physical branch network with online and mobile banking. It serves customers in several U.S. markets, including New York, California, Massachusetts, Washington, D.C., and Colorado. Its stated programs and policies include financing for affordable housing, support for union purchasing and contracting, acceptance of multiple forms of identification for account opening, and a commitment to financial inclusion. As of July 30, 2023, reference material reported $7.8 billion in assets and more than $45 billion in investment advisory and custodial services. Current scale, financial performance, ownership percentages, and executive leadership should be checked against the bank’s latest regulatory filings and investor disclosures.

1. 2021Public benefit corporation status

   Amalgamated became a public benefit corporation while remaining a publicly traded financial-services company.

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2. 2018Merger with New Resource Bank

   Amalgamated merged with New Resource Bank of San Francisco.

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3. 2018Initial public offering

   The bank became publicly traded on Nasdaq under the ticker AMAL.

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4. 2015Institution-wide $15 minimum wage announced

   The bank announced a $15-per-hour minimum wage for its employees.

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5. 1957Park Reservoir Housing Cooperative financing

   Amalgamated financed Park Reservoir Housing Cooperative, an affordable-housing development associated with New York’s Mitchell-Lama program.

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6. 1927Financing of Amalgamated Housing Cooperative

   The bank financed the Amalgamated Housing Cooperative in the Bronx, an early union-supported housing development.

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7. 1923Charter and opening of the bank

   The Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America chartered Amalgamated Bank of New York on March 16, and the bank opened to the public on April 14 in Manhattan.

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A labor-rooted, socially responsible U.S. commercial bank serving unions, nonprofits, advocacy organizations, institutional investors, businesses, and individuals.

• Personal Bankingretail banking

  Personal banking provides deposit accounts, checking services, everyday payments, online banking, mobile banking, and access to surcharge-free ATMs through the Allpoint Network. It extends the bank’s originally union-focused customer base to individual consumers while retaining the institution’s emphasis on financial access and responsible banking.

• Small Business Bankingbusiness banking

  Small-business banking supports business deposits, payments, cash management, lending, and related operating needs. The offering sits between consumer banking and the bank’s larger commercial and institutional businesses, serving enterprises that require relationship banking and financial tools for day-to-day operations.

• Commercial Bankingcommercial banking

  Commercial banking includes business deposits, commercial loans, mortgages, treasury and cash-management services, and payment capabilities. The bank serves middle-market companies and other commercial clients while also applying its sector expertise to mission-driven organizations and institutions.

• Union and Nonprofit Bankingspecialized banking

  This specialized relationship-banking area serves labor unions, nonprofit organizations, political organizations, advocacy groups, and other socially oriented institutions. It reflects the bank’s founding purpose and includes deposits, lending, payments, cash management, and institutional financial support.

• Institutional Asset Management and Custodyinvestment management and custody

  The Institutional Asset Management and Custody Division provides investment advisory and custodial services, particularly for Taft–Hartley benefit plans and other institutional clients. Reference material describes the division as overseeing more than $45 billion in investment advisory and custody services, a historical figure that requires confirmation against current disclosures.

• Affordable Housing Financespecialized lending

  Affordable housing finance includes construction and rehabilitation lending for below-market and community housing. The bank’s historical role includes financing union-supported housing and Mitchell-Lama development, while its stated affordable-housing construction program has targeted substantial investment in New York projects.

• 2016Down-Payment Protection Product

  New York · United States

  The bank helped create a home-buying product intended to protect purchasers’ down payments if they encountered turbulent market conditions.

  Outcome. The product was described as a first-of-its-kind offering at launch; subsequent adoption is not stated in the supplied sources.

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• 2015Employee $15 Minimum Wage Initiative

  United States

  Amalgamated announced a minimum hourly wage of $15 for its employees, presenting the policy as consistent with its labor-oriented values and concerns about wage inequality in banking.

  Outcome. The policy was announced as an institution-wide wage commitment; later implementation details are not specified in the supplied sources.

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• 2021Adoption of public benefit corporation statusStrategy

  The bank sought to formalize its social and environmental commitments alongside its obligations as a public company.

  What changed. Amalgamated became a public benefit corporation.

  Aftermath. The bank was described as the first publicly traded financial-services company to adopt this organizational status.

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• 2018Merger with New Resource BankM&A

  Amalgamated sought to broaden its geographic and customer reach while retaining a mission-oriented banking identity.

  What changed. The bank merged with New Resource Bank of San Francisco in May 2018.

  Aftermath. The transaction strengthened the bank’s presence in San Francisco and preceded its public-market listing later in 2018.

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• 2018Initial public offeringOther

  After operating as a privately held, union-linked bank, Amalgamated pursued access to public equity markets.

  What changed. The bank filed for an initial public offering and began trading on Nasdaq under the symbol AMAL.

  Aftermath. Amalgamated became a publicly traded company while continuing to describe itself as majority-owned by Workers United.

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• 2021Amalgamated Bank became a public benefit corporation

  The bank adopted public-benefit-corporation status, formalizing a governance structure intended to account for social and environmental objectives alongside shareholder interests.

  Other
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• 2018Amalgamated Bank merged with New Resource Bank

  The bank completed a merger with New Resource Bank of San Francisco, expanding its presence on the U.S. West Coast.

  M&A
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• 2018Amalgamated Bank completed its initial public offering

  Amalgamated Bank became a publicly traded company on Nasdaq under the ticker AMAL.

  Other
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• 2015Amalgamated Bank announced a $15 minimum hourly wage

  The bank announced that it would raise the minimum wage for its employees to $15 per hour, linking the policy to its labor-oriented corporate identity.

  Other
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1. Amalgamated Bank
2. Amalgamated Bank Investor Relations
3. Amalgamated Bank Official Website