Worked at Hambros Bank in London? Your pension probably still exists. The name on your payslip may not.

If you worked in London for Hambros Bank, this page is for you. The bank was sold to a French bank in 1998, and the European Commission's decision on that sale is public.

What happened

The European Commission received notice on 7 January 1998 that Société Générale would acquire control of three companies from Hambros PLC, among them Hambros Bank Limited (Source: European Commission, decision in case IV/M.1096, Société Générale and Hambros Bank, 6 February 1998, read 27 October 2026). The Commission described the operation as Société Générale acquiring the whole of the share capital of Hambros Bank from Hambros PLC (Source: European Commission, decision in case IV/M.1096, Société Générale and Hambros Bank, 6 February 1998, read 27 October 2026). The Commission's decision not to oppose the operation is dated 6 February 1998 (Source: European Commission, decision in case IV/M.1096, Société Générale and Hambros Bank, 6 February 1998, read 27 October 2026). Companies House lists the name Hambros Bank Limited for the company from 16 October 1969 to 2 November 1998 (Source: Companies House, the company's list of previous names, read 27 October 2026).

Why the trail is hard

The company that employed you was sold as a whole, and its registered name changed after the sale. The Commission's decision clears the purchase. It is not a completion notice, and we have not read a source for the date the purchase completed, so we give none.

Which era were you in?

The employer's name and owner changed over the years, so the first question is which one you worked for. This holds for the dates in the left column.

Which pension arrangement applied to you depends on the company that employed you in those years and on your own terms. This page does not name a scheme or say who holds one today. A name that is right for the bank today may not have been right for your years, so we do not guess. Your report names it.

Not sure which row fits? Start the free check and tell us when you worked at Hambros.

Do I have a pension from my Hambros Bank years?

It depends first on when you left. The law set a minimum, and a scheme could always be more generous than the law.

If you left after 6 April 1988 with 2 years or more of service, you very likely have a preserved pension, if you were in the scheme.

Sources: the age 26 and 5 year rule, Social Security Act 1973, Schedule 16, paragraph 6(1), read 20 October 2026, in force from 6 April 1975 (Social Security Act 1973 (Commencement No. 2) Order 1973, read 20 October 2026). The age condition ended on 1 January 1986 (Social Security Act 1985, section 1, read 20 October 2026, and Social Security Act 1985 (Commencement No. 2) Order 1985, read 20 October 2026). Five years became two with effect from 6 April 1988 (Social Security Act 1973, Schedule 16 as amended, note on the Social Security Act 1986, section 10, read 20 October 2026). Two years today, and 30 days for money purchase service that began on or after 1 October 2015 (Pension Schemes Act 1993, section 71, read 20 October 2026).

The free official route comes first

The UK government's free Pension Tracing Service gives you contact details for a workplace pension scheme from the name of an employer. It has a limit, in its own words: "This service will not tell you whether you have a pension, or what its value is." (Source: GOV.UK, Find pension contact details, read 20 October 2026.)

With an old City bank, the name is the hard part. The name on your payslip is rarely the name on the record today, and a search for the wrong name finds the wrong scheme or nothing you recognise.

Former colleagues

We have not yet checked for alumni groups or reunions for Hambros, so we list none. If you know of one, the notice board below is coming for exactly this.

Frequently asked questions

I worked for Hambros America or Banque Rüegg. Is that this page? Possibly not. The Commission names Hambros America and Banque Rüegg as two other companies in the same sale. Tell us where you worked when you order.

I worked for Hambros before the sale. Does that matter? Yes. Your employer was Hambros Bank Limited, owned by Hambros PLC. Tell us your years, and check the table above for the rule that applied when you left.

Do you contact the pension scheme for me? No. We identify who holds the pension and give you what to send. You contact them yourself, and the pension stays yours throughout.

Is the government tracing service not enough? It is the right first step, and it costs nothing. It gives a contact for a scheme name you already have. It will not tell you whether you have a pension, and with Hambros Bank the name you remember is not the name on the record today.

What if you find nothing? We say so in the report. The refund promise sits next to the order button above.

More of the City's vanished banks: Hill Samuel, Cazenove, Kleinwort Benson, and the A to Z of old names.