context of interstate banking as an example, BankAmerica, the holding company owner of Bank of America, a California bank, acquired Seattle First National Bank, a Washington bank, in 1985. Seattle First National retained its own name; however, Bank of America gained a foothold in the State of Washington, and de facto interstate banking existed. Security Pacific, another California-based bank that has since been acquired itself, followed suit by acquiring Rainier National Bank in Washington state. The Security Pacific strategy, however, has to change the names of all acquired banks to Security Pacific, although the banks in states outside of California remained separate institutions from the California Security Pacific. All, however, were owned by a common holding company, and interstate banking in effect was practiced.
The Bank of America/Seattle First National and Security Pacific/Rainier National examples are but two among many examples of the use of the holding company concept to circumvent the federal prohibition against interstate banking. Where ever the holding company concept has been used in this way, concentration in commercial banking has increased, and some degree of either state or local control over banking has been lost.
It is somewhat pointless to argue that the advent of interstate branch banking will not re
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