The Presidency Banks’ Act-1876

The Presidency Banks’ Act, for constituting and regulating the banks of Bengal, Madras & Bombay.

THE PRESIDENCY BANKS ACT, 1876.
ACT NO. XI. OF 1876.
Preamble

It is hereby enacted as follows:-
An Act for constituting and regulating the Banks of Bengal, Madras, and Bombay.

WHEREAS the Bank of Bengal is now constituted and regulated by Act No. IV. of 1862, as amended by Acts No. VI. of 1862, and No. XIX. of 1870, and its capital consists of twenty-two millions of rupees, in shares of one thousand rupees each;
And whereas the Bank of Madras is now constituted and regulated by Madras Act No. VI. of 1866, as amended by Madras Act No. I. of 1871, and its capital consists of five millions six hundred and twenty-five thousand rupees, in shares of one thousand rupees each;

And whereas a Bank, named the Bank of Bombay, was constituted and regulated by Bombay Act No. X. of 1863, as amended by Bombay Acts No. XV. of 1866 and No. I. of 1867; but such Bank has been wound up, and the said Bombay Acts are now obsolete, and should be expressly repealed;

And whereas on the 10th day of December 1867, a joint-stock Banking Company was registered and incorporated at Bombay, by virtue of the Indian Companies Act, 1866, under the name of “The New Bank of Bombay, Limited,” with a Memorandum of Association and Articles of Association then also registered, and prescribing the constitution and regulations for the management of such Bank;

And whereas the Government of India now holds two thousand two hundred shares in the said Bank of Bengal, and five hundred and sixty-two anda-half shares in the said Bank of Madras; and, under the provisions of the Said Acts, No. IV. of 1862 and Madras Act No. VI. of 1886, is bound to appoint, and has power to remove, certain of the directors of the said Banks of Bengal and Madtras, respectively, and has also power to give a proxy to any person whom the Governor-General in Council may appoint, to attend and vote at any meeting of the proprietors of each of the same Banks;

And whereas the Government of India has determined to sell its said shares and to surrender its said powers; and it is expedient to relieve the said Government from the said duty of appointing directors, and to repeal the said enactments, and to consolidate such of them, as relate to the said Banks of Bengal and Madras, respectively, with the changes rendered necessary or desirable by such sale, surrender and relief;

And whereas it is expedient to reduce the said capital of the Bank of Bengal by two millions of rupees and to reduce the said capital of the Bank of Madras by six hundred and twenty-five thousand rupees, and to divide the capital so reduced of each of the same Banks into shares of five hundred rupees each;

And whereas it is expedient that the said New Bank of Bombay, Limited, should be re-constituted and regulated, in manner in this Act provided, under the name of the Bank of Bombay;

1. This Act may be called “The Presidency Banks Act, 1876;” And it shall come into force on the 1st day of May 1876.
Repeal of enactments.

2. On and from that day the statute specified in the first part of the schedule hereto annexed shall be repealed to the extent mentioned in the third column thereof, and the Acts specified in the second, third, and fourth parts of the same schedule shall be wholly repealed. But all bye-laws and regulations made under any such Act and then in force, shall, so far as they are consistent with this Act, be deemed to have been made hereunder.

References in Act X. of 1866.

The references made in the Indian Companies’ Act, 1866, to the Bank of Bengal, the Bank of Madras, and the Bank of Bombay shall be deemed to be made respectively to the Bank of Bengal, the Bank of Madras, and the Bank of Bombay as constituted by this Act.

Interpretation-clause.

3. In this Act, unless there be something repugnant in the subject, or context-

“The Bank” means the Bank of Bengal, the Bank of Madras, or the Bank of Bombay (as the case may be), as constituted and regulated by this Act;
“Capital” means the capital for the time being of the bank:
“Shares” means the shares for the time being of the capital, and includes also half-shares:
“Capital Stock” means that part of the capital into which wholly paid-up shares have been converted or consolidated, and in the case of the Bank of Bengal and the Bank of Madras, includes the present consolidated stock of such Banks respectively:
“Registered” means registered in the books of the Bank:
“Shareholders” means the duly registered holders from time to time of the shares of the Bank:
“Proprietors” means the duly registered holders from time to time of the capital stock of the Bank;
“Directors” means the Directors assembled for the purpose of performing any of their functions under this Act:
“Board” means a meeting of the directors duly called and constituted, or, as the case may be, the directors assembled at a Board:
“Auditors” and “Secretary” mean those respective officers from time to time of the Bank; and “Secretary” includes a Secretary and Treasurer and a Deputy Secretary:
“General Meeting” means a meeting of proprietors or shareholders, or both, held annually under section forty-nine; it includes any adjourned holding thereof:
“Special Meeting” means a meeting of proprietors or shareholders, or both, held for the transaction of some particular business specified in the notice convening the meeting; it includes any adjourned meeting thereof:
“Special Resolution” means a resolution passed at a special meeting:
“Office” means the Office, or principal office for the time being of the Bank:
“Goods” includes also bullion, wares, and merchandize:

“ Presidency of Fort St. George” means the territories now under the Government of the Governor of Fort St. George in Council;
“Presidency of Bombay” means the territories now under the Government of the Governor of Bombay in Council; and
“Presidency of Fort William” means all the territories in British India, other than the Presidency of Fort St. George and the Presidency of Bombay.