What Do Those Initials Hide?

Some of them seem go to initials to hide their real name from customers who’d rather “Buy American.”

Why do companies lose their names and adopt their initials? In some cases the original name becomes obsolete. AT&T doesn’t worry about telegraph anymore. A computer company named COLECO made more sense than The Connecticut Leather Company.

It’s not always that simple, especially for banks! Some of them seem go to initials to hide their real name from customers who’d rather “Buy American.” I was thinking about this after seeing a commercial for ING Direct during the Mets/Phillies game (don’t ask).

  • HSBC: Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation
  • TD Banknorth: Toronto Dominion
  • ING Direct: Internationale Nederlanden Groep

These banks are doing nothing wrong or illegal, but I’ll bet few of their customers know where the home office really is.