On May 26, 1846, the Montreal City and District Savings Bank (which was eventually to become Laurentian Bank of Canada) is founded by Monsignor Ignace Bourget, second Bishop of Montreal, and by a group of 15 prominent Montrealers from many linguistic and denominational communities. After its first year of operation, the Banks serves 500 clients with $117,400 in assets.

The Bank’s accounts grow from 1,301 to 3,072 between 1850 and 1860, with deposits totalling $746,043.

Twenty-five years after its creation, the Bank serves 11,000 clients and holds $3 million in deposits. The organization becomes a share capital limited company and is awarded a federal charter. The institution moves to 262, rue Saint-Jacques in Montreal, which remains its Head Office for more than a century.