It was formed in July 2001, as a wholly owned subsidiary of Lloyds Banking Group, but its origins can be traced back to 1922.

The business should not be confused with Black Horse (originally Beehive and most recently Lloyds TSB) Life Assurance Company, whose interests were amalgamated into Scottish Widows in September 2004.

[3] The origins of UDT go back to 1919, when the Continental Guaranty Corporation of New York established a branch in the City of London, which concentrated mainly on providing finance for the British motor trade.

The business of the branch was transferred to a separate company in 1922, which was registered in England as the Continental Guaranty Corporation Ltd.

[6] Sir Julian Hodge's other interests were divested to The Carlyle Trust (a company he owned) in 1976, and the consumer finance operation was renamed Chartered Trust; in September 2000, it was sold by Standard Chartered to Lloyds TSB for £627 million.