The 1st American commercial bank

The Bank of North America, in Philadelphia, was the first chartered bank in the United States and functioned as the nation's initial de facto central bank. Proposed by Superintendent of Finance Robert Morris on May 17, 1781, with input from Alexander Hamilton, opening a few months later.

Despite its deemed "essential" role in the American Revolutionary War by Hamilton, objections from the Pennsylvania government led to its reincorporation under state law. This move rendered it unsuitable as a national bank under the U.S. Constitution. Consequently, Congress established the First Bank of the United States in 1791, while the Bank of North America persisted as a private entity.