[2] Founded in 1864 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, it maintains its corporate headquarters in Toronto and its head office in Montreal.

In November 2017, RBC was added to the Financial Stability Board's list of global systemically important banks.

The centre of the Canadian financial industry had moved from Halifax to Montreal, so the Merchants Bank relocated its head office there.

It provides life, health, travel, home and auto and reinsurance products as well as creditor and business insurance services.

In 2000, RBC merged merchant credit/debit card acquiring business with the Bank of Montreal's to form Moneris Solutions.

The party responsible later identified themselves on Independent Media Center and threatened to make their presence at the upcoming 2010 G20 Toronto summit.

[27] In December 2023, RBC received approval from Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland to take over HSBC Bank in a deal.

From this point forward the bank's logo has contained the same basic element of a stylized lion clutching a globe, becoming more simplified with each iteration.

Alongside promotion of the Royal Bank Plaza, a tweaked version of the mark by Montreal design consultancy Gottschalk + Ash silently debuted in June 1979.

The same basic form was retained, however many lines were thickened and details simplified to facilitate printing at small sizes.

The total brand overhaul and shortening of the Royal Bank name to RBC in August 2001 coincided with their expansion into the United States market.

[46] The direction of the lion, now further simplified, was reversed, the crown above omitted, and both the symbol and wordmark were placed within a blue shield.

[55] In 1928, RBC moved its head office to the Old Royal Bank Building, at 360 Saint Jacques Street, Montreal.

[3] On January 15, 2007, CBC Radio reported RBC was "refusing" to open US dollar accounts for people of certain nationalities.

[57] Canadian citizens with dual citizenship in Cuba, Iran, Iraq, Myanmar, North Korea or Sudan (mostly countries with US sanctions) were affected.

The US Treasury Department restricts certain foreign nationals from using the US dollar payment system to limit terrorism and money laundering after the September 11, 2001, attacks.

[63][64] RBC invested in SCO Group during the series of court cases seeking to collect royalties from the users of Linux.

[68] The CBC reported on May 7, 2013, that, during Question Period in Parliament, the NDP leveled accusations against the government and then Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

[69] On December 29, 2022, the Supreme Court of Ontario certified a class action lawsuit permitting employees of RBC Dominion Securities to seek $800 million in damages, over alleged unpaid wages for holidays and other vacation days.