The company was founded in 1842 as BridgeportSavings Bank in Bridgeport, Connecticut. In 1955, the company acquired Southport Savings Bank. In 1981, the bank became the first in the country to provide a telephone bill paying service. In 1981, the company acquired the assets of First Stamford Bank and Trust Company. In 1982, the company acquired Guardian Federal Savings and Loan Association of Bridgeport. In 1983, the company acquired People's Bank of Vernon and was renamed People's Bank. In 1985, the company began issuing credit cards. In 1986, the company acquired First Federal Savings Bank. In 1989, the company moved to a new headquarters building designed by Richard Meier. In 1991, the company acquired the deposits of Hartford-based Landmark Bank. In 1998, the company acquired Norwich Financial Corporation for $164 million in cash. In 2004, the bank sold its credit card division to the Royal Bank of Scotland at a premium of $360 million. On November 22, 2010, the bank opened its first location in Boston. On June 7, 2007, the bank changed its name to People's United Bank. On January 1, 2008, the bank acquired Chittenden Corporation for $1.9 billion. Also in 2008, the bank acquired Ocean Bank of New Hampshire, Maine Bank & Trust, Merrill Bank, Flagship Bank, and Bank of Western Massachusetts. In February 2008, a data storage company, Archive America, lost backup tapes in transit containing the "names, birthdays, Social Security numbers and other information" of customers of the bank and of The Bank of New York Mellon. In February 2010, the company acquired Financial Federal Corporation, an equipment financing company. In April 2010, the company acquired Butler Bank, which was seized by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. In December 2010, the company acquired LSB Corporation and Smithtown Bancorp. In July 2011, the company acquired Danvers Bancorp. In 2012, the company acquired 57 branches in the greater New York metro area from Royal Bank of Scotland, including 53 branches in Stop & Shop supermarkets. In October 2015, the company's insurance agency subsidiary acquired Kesten-Brown Insurance. In November 2016, the bank was selected to manage the core bank accounts for the commonwealth of Massachusetts. In April 2017, the company acquired Suffolk Bancorp and in July, it acquired LEAF Commercial Capital. In August 2017, the bank was selected to manage the core bank accounts for the state of Vermont. In June 2018, People's United Bank agreed to purchase Farmington Bank in a deal valued at $544 million.
Headquarters
People's Bank Headquarters was built in 1989, designed by renowned architect Richard Meier. At 16 stories, the People's Bank building is the tallest building in downtown Bridgeport, although that is expected to change due to two new residential highrises planned for 2020.
