A. No; the London office is itself a branch office and much of the ultimate settlement of balances takes place there. The conduct of the ordinary London business is on the same lines as that of any other London branch bank. No notes can be issued in London.
Q. Do your branches have business relations with merchants, farmers, and all classes of people in their respective localities?
A. Yes, they have business relations with all classes of people.
Q. What is the law governing your note issues, and how are note issues limited and how secured?
A. The act of Parliament of 1845 governs our note issue. There is no limit to the amount of notes that may be issued, but the bank is required to hold gold (and silver to an extent not exceeding one-fifth of the total) against the notes in the hands of the public on the average of each month, and that at its head office in Edinburgh—gold held at branch offices does not count—to an amount sufficient each week on Saturday to cover the notes in the hands of the public in excess of a certain amount specified, £216,451.
Q. To what extent are your notes legal tender in Great Britain?
A. Our notes are not legal tender at all.
Q. What other banks have the right of issue in Scotland?
A. The Bank of Scotland, the British Linen Bank, the Commercial Bank of Scotland (Limited), the National Bank of Scotland (Limited), the North of Scotland and Town and County Bank (Limited), the Union Bank of Scotland (Limited), the Clydesdale Bank (Limited).
Q. Are the notes of your issuing banks secured; and if so, how?