Church House Trust
Encyclopedia
Virgin Bank Ltd trading as Church House Trust is a private British bank founded in 1978 and based in Yeovil
, United Kingdom
. In January 2010 the former Church House Trust plc was acquired by Virgin Money
and renamed to Virgin Bank Ltd.
.
's Virgin Money
announced the acquisition of Church House Trust Plc for £12.3 million, giving Virgin a small foothold in the UK banking market. Virgin Money had previously been attempting to buy a bank since 2007 when it bid for Northern Rock
. The bank will be renamed under the Virgin brand.
Yeovil
Yeovil is a town and civil parish in south Somerset, England. The parish had a population of 27,949 at the 2001 census, although the wider urban area had a population of 42,140...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. In January 2010 the former Church House Trust plc was acquired by Virgin Money
Virgin Money
Virgin Money is a UK-based financial services company owned by the Virgin Group and founded by Sir Richard Branson in March 1995. It was originally known as Virgin Direct, and pioneered index tracking by launching a value Personal Equity Plan into the market. In the 2000s Virgin Money expanded its...
and renamed to Virgin Bank Ltd.
Origins
The origins of Church House can be traced back to 1792 when Edward Batten formed Messrs. Batten & Co. Batten was the senior of three partners and was later joined by his son John Batten in 1829. After a number of mergers and acquisitions in the nineteenth and early twentieth century the bank grew, until a number of the members of the Batten family were casualties of the First World War, leading to the company being purchased by what became the Westminster BankWestminster Bank
Westminster Bank was a British retail bank which operated in England and Wales from 1834 until its merger into the National Westminster Bank in 1970; it remains a registered company but is dormant...
.
The current company
In 1924 Lt.Colonel Bill Batten assumed control of the legal practice, and then in 1978 the bank was re-founded. The name of Church House comes from the Queen Anne house just opposite St. John’s parish church in the centre of Yeovil that was first occupied by Nathaniel Batten in 1720. In 1999 the bank was too large for this old building and moved to a former glove factory.Purchase by Virgin
On 8 January 2010 Richard BransonRichard Branson
Sir Richard Charles Nicholas Branson is an English business magnate, best known for his Virgin Group of more than 400 companies....
's Virgin Money
Virgin Money
Virgin Money is a UK-based financial services company owned by the Virgin Group and founded by Sir Richard Branson in March 1995. It was originally known as Virgin Direct, and pioneered index tracking by launching a value Personal Equity Plan into the market. In the 2000s Virgin Money expanded its...
announced the acquisition of Church House Trust Plc for £12.3 million, giving Virgin a small foothold in the UK banking market. Virgin Money had previously been attempting to buy a bank since 2007 when it bid for Northern Rock
Northern Rock
Northern Rock plc is a British bank, best known for becoming the first bank in 150 years to suffer a bank run after having had to approach the Bank of England for a loan facility, to replace money market funding, during the credit crisis in 2007. Having failed to find a commercial buyer for...
. The bank will be renamed under the Virgin brand.
Key staff
Prior to the purchase the key staff of Church House were:- David Batten - Managing Director and Chairman.
- Graham Hughes - Chief Executive of Church House Investments Limited and has been a Director of Church House Trust Plc.
- James Mahon - Investment Director of Church House Investments Limited and a Director of Church House Trust Plc.
- James Johnsen - Director of Church House Investments Limited.