Great Western Bank (California)

Great Western Financial

Trade name	Great Western Bank
Company type	Public
Traded as	Template:NYSE was (1955–1997)
Industry	Banking
Founded	Template:Bulletlist
Defunct	Template:End date and age
Fate	Acquired by Washington Mutual, now JPMorgan Chase.
Headquarters	Chatsworth, California
Area served	California, Florida, Washington, Arizona, New York
Website	archived official website

Great Western Bank (previously known as Great Western Savings & Loan) was a prominent retail bank focused mainly on the Western United States. Based in Chatsworth, California, it ranked as the second-largest savings and loan institution nationwide, surpassed only by Home Savings of America. In 1997, it was purchased by Washington Mutual for $6.8 billion.

Ownership of Great Western Bank rested with Great Western Financial Corporation ("GWFC"), a Delaware-incorporated entity publicly listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker "GWF".

Founding and Development

The origins of Great Western date back to 1925 when it was established as "Great Western Building and Loan Association" in downtown Los Angeles by investors of Czech heritage. Joseph F. Triska served as its inaugural president, followed in 1927 by Felix B. Janovsky, who remained at the helm for twenty years. The firm adopted the name "Great Western Savings and Loan Association" in 1942. In 1947, ownership transferred to Adolph Slechta, a Czech-American native of St. Louis. By 1948, the company's primary office was located on Flower Street, with an additional branch on Crenshaw Avenue. A new headquarters building was inaugurated in 1956 at the intersection of Crenshaw and Vernon.

In 1955, Great Western Corp. transitioned into a publicly held holding company overseeing Great Western Savings and its subsidiaries via stock offerings, rebranding as Great Western Financial Corp. the following year. Its shares began trading on the American Stock Exchange in 1957.

From 1956 through 1959, Great Western Financial pursued an aggressive acquisition strategy, integrating Bakersfield Savings, Santa Ana Savings, West Coast Savings (Sacramento), Guaranty Savings (San Jose), Central Savings (San Luis Obispo), and First Savings (Oakland) into its portfolio. Legislative changes in California in 1965 permitted consolidation among subsidiaries; consequently, West Coast and Guaranty merged with First Savings, while Santa Ana was absorbed into Great Western Savings, resulting in four distinct S&L units and elevating Great Western Savings to the position of fourth largest savings and loan institution nationally.

Additional acquisitions during this period included Santa Rosa Savings (1968), Safety Savings (1969), Belmont Savings (1969), Citizens Savings of Santa Barbara (1969), and Victory Savings of North Hollywood (1970). Notably, Citizens Savings & Loan had origins dating back to 1887—a founding year later adopted by Great Western itself.

The enactment of California legislation in 1969 permitting statewide branching enabled Great Western to consolidate its Northern and Central California operations with its Southern California-based Great Western Savings at the beginning of 1970. This created a unified statewide savings and loan association comprising 33 branches.

In a significant move during 1970, Great Western acquired LFC Financial Corp. along with its Equitable Savings subsidiary through a $35 million stock transaction, thereby becoming the second-largest savings and loan association across the country. To comply with federal antitrust regulations, it divested three branches to State Mutual Savings and Home Federal Savings. The acquisition received partial financial assistance from the FSLIC.

Early in 1971, Sentinel Savings of San Diego became part of Great Western's expanding network. Later that year, regulatory approval was sought to merge five separate Great Western savings and loan subsidiaries into a single entity.

Between 1970 and 1971, the company continued its expansion by acquiring four additional California savings institutions.

1980s–1990s

In the aftermath of the savings and loan crisis during the 1980s and 1990s, Great Western expanded its portfolio by acquiring multiple failed savings and loan institutions through the Resolution Trust Corporation.

By December 1985, Great Western had shifted certain administrative operations to a partly owned facility located in Chatsworth. In October 1989, the company revealed plans to relocate its headquarters to a newly constructed 10-story executive office tower on a 20-acre site in Chatsworth, adjacent to an existing service center, with intentions to divest its Beverly Hills headquarters. This relocation was finalized in May 1992.

In 1991, Great Western achieved a record net income of $298 million, more than doubling its previous year’s earnings, establishing itself as the most profitable savings and loan institution nationwide. Boasting assets totaling $39.6 billion, it ranked as the second-largest thrift institution after H. F. Ahmanson. The company operated 1,118 branches specializing in retail banking, mortgage lending, and consumer finance across 31 states, maintaining strong market positions particularly in California and Florida.

September 1993 saw Great Western divest its Visa credit card division to Associates Corporation of North America (Ford Financial Services Group), citing unprofitable returns from its portfolio of 178,000 Visa accounts; this transaction led to approximately 80 job cuts.

The January 1994 Northridge earthquake caused damage to Great Western’s administrative campus in Chatsworth. Nevertheless, the company’s profits increased fourfold that year due to lower loss reserves and proceeds from the sale of 31 branches along Florida's Gulf Coast.

In 1995, Chairman James Montgomery transferred CEO responsibilities to President John Maher, who subsequently intensified the company’s banking service expansion.

In 1996, Great Western initiated a $115 million restructuring plan that included cutting 800 positions, consolidating mortgage banking locations, and investing in technology enhancements. Later that year, the firm sold its student loan division to Crestar Bank.

Expansion in California

In January 1982, Great Western announced it would acquire Northern California Savings & Loan Association based in Palo Alto, which operated 61 branches, for $61 million in stock. This acquisition was completed by August 1982 and increased Great Western’s assets to $12.6 billion while expanding its branch network to 190—the largest number in California at that time.

In August 1986, Great Western entered into an agreement to purchase 119 out of 136 Southern California branches of the failed HomeFed Bank from the Resolution Trust Corporation for $151 million.

By October 1986, American Savings—a subsidiary of Financial Corp. of America—acquired 13 Northern California branches along with deposits from Great Western for an undisclosed amount, adding approximately $570 million in deposits.

In March 1991, Great Western acquired deposits and took control of 28 branches from the failed Irvine-based Lincoln Savings and Loan Association via the Resolution Trust Corporation for $12.1 million.

November 1991 brought news that Great Western would acquire five offices from Woodland Hills–based Republic Federal Savings & Loan; this transaction was completed by March 1992.

In June 1994, Citicorp sold deposits from six Citibank branches located in San Diego County to Great Western Bank for an undisclosed price.

Expansion into Florida

Great Western began extending its operations beyond California in February 1986 by purchasing the failed Intercapital Savings Bank, located in Jacksonville Beach, from the Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corporation for $20.9 million. This acquisition represented Great Western’s initial venture into the Florida retail banking sector and its first out-of-state purchase.

In August 1986, Great Western revealed plans to acquire four branches situated in Broward and Palm Beach Counties from Miami-based Chase Federal Savings and Loan Association, with the transaction amount undisclosed. The subsequent month, the company announced its intention to buy Southern Home Savings Bank of Pensacola for $25 million in stock. By December 1986, Great Western agreed to acquire SunPoint Savings Bank, headquartered in Lake Worth, for $40 million in stock, finalizing the deal in July 1987.

In July 1989, Great Western aimed to purchase 63 out of 71 branches of Miami-based CenTrust Bank for $150 million, which held deposits totaling $2.4 billion. However, before regulatory approval was granted, CenTrust was seized by authorities in February 1990. Subsequently, Great Western acquired all 71 branches along with $2.1 billion in deposits from the Resolution Trust Corporation (RTC) for $86 million, marking the largest savings and loan failure at that time.

In June 1990, Great Western expanded further by acquiring 13 Florida branches of Carteret Savings Bank, a New Jersey-based institution, for $26.5 million; this deal closed in October 1990. The remaining portion of Carteret failed and was seized in December 1992. That same month, Great Western purchased 18 Florida branches of the failed California-based Gibraltar Savings from the RTC for $3.75 million.

September 1990 saw Great Western announce the acquisition of 27 Florida branches of City Federal Savings Bank, a failed New Jersey institution, from the RTC for $9.75 million. In March 1991, it further grew its Florida footprint by acquiring all 33 offices of Clearwater-based Pioneer Savings Bank for $5.25 million, bringing its Florida assets to $7 billion across 149 branches.

In October 1991, Great Western agreed to purchase deposits and 23 offices of Orlando-based The First FA from the RTC for $23.4 million. Then in March 1992, it acquired deposits totaling $1.8 billion and 53 branches of Orlando-based AmeriFirst Federal Savings Bank from the RTC for $27.5 million; following this acquisition, some overlapping branches were closed.

By August 1994, Great Western divested 31 branches located in western Florida—including markets such as Tampa-St. Petersburg—to First Union for $75 million as part of a strategic focus on other regions within Florida.

Expansion into Arizona

Great Western made its first move into Arizona in June 1987 by announcing the purchase of First Commercial Savings & Loan Association based in Phoenix for $17 million in cash. This acquisition was completed by January 1988 and marked Great Western’s inaugural expansion into the Arizona market.

Expansion into Washington

In July 1987, Great Western broadened its reach into Washington state through an agreement to acquire Bellevue-based Great Western Savings Bank for $52.3 million. The deal closed in February 1988 and added 19 branches with assets totaling $750 million to Great Western’s portfolio, establishing a foothold in the Pacific Northwest.

By June 1989, Great Western had sold its six Spokane-area branches to Washington Trust Bank as part of a retreat from Eastern Washington operations. In September 1992, it withdrew entirely from Washington by exchanging its remaining 13 branches there for seven Southern California locations owned by Seattle-based Pacific First Bank. This branch swap involved approximately $445 million in deposits gained by Great Western and about $385 million transferred to Pacific First, aligning Great Western’s strategic focus more closely with Southern California markets.

Expansion into New York

Great Western's only venture into the New York market occurred in September 1987 with the establishment of a state-chartered savings bank located in White Plains. This branch handled consumer deposits and issued personal loans but was prohibited from providing commercial lending services.

Due to limitations on further expansion within the New York City metropolitan region, Great Western divested its White Plains location to Chemical Bank in 1990.

Acquisition by Washington Mutual

At the beginning of 1997, California-based thrift institution H. F. Ahmanson & Co. initiated a hostile takeover attempt targeting Great Western. However, a more amicable proposal from Washington Mutual ultimately succeeded later that year. In an interesting turn, Washington Mutual purchased Ahmanson for $10 billion in 1998. Subsequently, in 2008, Washington Mutual itself was absorbed by JPMorgan Chase.

Advertising

The company adopted the GW brand in 1971 as part of consolidating its savings operations under a single subsidiary.

Celebrity endorsers

Starting in October 1977, actor John Wayne began appearing in television advertisements for Great Western, including a memorable commercial filmed in the Sequoia National Forest during 1978. Following Wayne's passing in 1979, the company featured several notable celebrity endorsers such as Ben Johnson, Glenn Ford, Barbara Stanwyck, Maureen O'Hara, and John Huston. By 1982, Dennis Weaver was appointed as the primary spokesman, a position he maintained until 1996. Throughout this era, the bank’s marketing campaigns prominently used the slogan "We'll Always Be There".

John Wayne statue

In 1984, Great Western commissioned western-themed sculptor Harry Jackson to create a life-sized bronze statue of John Wayne, which was installed outside their Beverly Hills headquarters at 8484 Wilshire Boulevard. After relocating to Chatsworth in 1992, the company sold this building. Magazine publisher Larry Flynt purchased both the property and the statue in 1994.

Naming rights and sponsorships

The Forum, an indoor arena located in Inglewood, California—once home to the Los Angeles Lakers and Kings—was officially named the "Great Western Forum" from 1988 through 2003. Securing naming rights in 1988 was an uncommon marketing strategy at that time for Great Western S&L. The venue retained this name for six years after Great Western ceased operations, with Washington Mutual continuing the branding until the expiration of the 15-year agreement in 2003. The final "GW" logo displayed atop the roof was removed during renovations under new ownership in 2013. Chase Bank, inheriting Great Western’s legacy through Washington Mutual’s assets, sponsored The Forum from 2014 until 2022 before Kia took over naming rights.