Black Horse Limited is the United Kingdom’s leading provider of motor finance. It was formed in July 2001, as a wholly owned subsidiary of Lloyds Banking Group, but its origins can be traced back to 1922. The company helps over 200,000 customers every year to finance new and used cars, caravans, motorhomes or motorbikes through their network of over 5,000 dealers. The business should not to be confused with Black Horse Life Assurance Company, whose interests were amalgamated into Scottish Widows in September 2004.
History
Following the creation of Lloyds TSB Group in 1998, the businesses of Lloyds Bowmaker and United Dominions Trust were combined into Lloyds UDT. In September 2000, Lloyds TSB acquired Chartered Trust, and, in June 2001, the business of Chartered Trust was merged into the business of Lloyds UDT, and the enlarged operation rebadged under the Black Horse, name to form the asset finance division of Lloyds TSB.
United Dominions Trust
The origins of UDT go back to 1919, when the Continental Guaranty Corporation of New York established a branch in the City of London, which concentrated mainly on providing finance for the British motor trade. The business of the branch was transferred to a separate company in 1922, which was registered in England as the Continental Guaranty Corporation Ltd. In 1923, the company was acquired by British interests; in 1925, it converted to a public company and the name was changed to United Dominions Trust. Having been previously associated with Barclays Bank, in 1981, it became a subsidiary of the Trustee Savings Bank.
Lloyds Bowmaker
Bowmaker Limited was formed in 1926 and acquired by Lloyds and Scottish in 1982. Lloyds and Scottish was formed in 1958, by the acquisition of the Scottish Midland Guarantee Trust and Olds Discount Company by Lloyds Bank and the National and Commercial Banking Group. In 1981, Lloyds Bank increased its shareholding in Lloyds and Scottish, taking full control of minority shareholdings in 1984, to form Lloyds Bowmaker.
Chartered Trust
In 1973, Standard and Chartered Banking Group acquired the whole of the share capital of The Hodge Group Limited not already owned by The Chartered Bank for £45 million. Sir Julian Hodge's other interests were divested to The Carlyle Trust in 1976, and the consumer finance operation was renamed Chartered Trust; in September 2000, it was sold by Standard Chartered to Lloyds TSB for £627 million.
