Editing Merchant bank (section)

{{Short description|Deals in commercial loans and investment}}
{{Refimprove|date=November 2007}}
{{Banking |banks}}

A '''merchant bank''' is historically a bank dealing in commercial loans and investment. In modern British usage, it is the same as an [[investment bank]]. Merchant banks were the first modern banks and evolved from medieval [[merchant]]s who traded in commodities, particularly [[cloth merchant]]s. Historically, merchant banks' purpose was to facilitate or finance the production and trade of commodities, hence the name ''merchant''. Few banks today restrict their activities to such a narrow scope.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Merchant Bank |url=https://corporatefinanceinstitute.com/resources/career/merchant-bank/ |access-date=2024-07-02 |website=Corporate Finance Institute |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-01-27 |title=Merchant Banking: Careers, Salaries, and Exit Opportunities |url=https://mergersandinquisitions.com/merchant-banking/ |access-date=2024-07-02 |language=en-US}}</ref>

In modern usage in the [[United States]], the term additionally has taken on a more narrow meaning, and refers to a [[financial institution]] providing capital to companies in form of share ownership instead of loans. A merchant bank also provides advice on corporate matters to the firms in which they invest.