The Bank of China is a public company which was founded in Republic of China in 1912 by Government in replacement of the Government bank of Imperial China. The Bank of China is one of the big four commercial banks owned by the state. The other three banks are: Bank of Communications, Central Bank of China and Farmers Bank of China. The banknotes of the Bank of China were issued until 1942 on the behalf of the Government. The Bank of China split in two operations at the end of the Chinese civil war in 1949. The Bank of China operates in different countries as Philippines, Australia, South Africa, Hungary, Russia, France, Germany, Thailand and many other countries, all together in twenty seven countries. The Bank of China is number five largest bank in the world by market capitalization value. Bank of China started operating in 1917 in HongKOng and became a main player in the country. In 1981 a Bank of China opened in New York. The bank of China bought twenty percent stake in La Compagnie Financière Edmond de Rothschild.