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Some
Images © Barclays Ref 0030-0673. PLEASE
NOTE: The image of the Penguin Book Title – “The Day of the Triffids” (John
Wyndham, 1951), along with the Penguin device is the copyrighted property of
Penguin Books Ltd.
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But let us begin at the beginning. As
its name implies, the work of the department falls under two headings. The
Bank acts as Registrar for an imposing list of companies, and Share Registers
covering many thousands of holders are maintained in the department. |
The Main Office at Clements House Image © Martins Bank Archive
Collections |
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The main work consists of:— Dealing with transfers arising from
market transactions. They have to be entered into or removed from the
registers. The old certificates are cancelled and new ones prepared, audited
and sent to the company concerned for sealing, and thereafter forwarded to
the brokers lodging the transfers. Many thousands of such transfers pass
through the department in the course of a year.
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Another view of the Main Office Image © Martins Bank Archive
Collections |
The calculation and preparation of dividend warrants for the companies
concerned. Registration of probates, mandates, changes of address and so on.
The sending out of notices, annual accounts and other information in
connection with annual general meetings. The compilation of annual returns
and lists of shareholders. All this is more or less the same routine as is
observed in Head Office in our own Secretary's Department, or Share Transfer
Department as it is often called, and an essential part of a Registrar's work
is the maintenance of an efficient addressing system. As in Head Office,
there is an addressograph plate for every holding and a new one has to be
prepared for a new holding or the existing one taken out when a sale takes
place. Likewise, changes of address and mandate instructions have to be
altered on the plates.
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The difference between Head Office Secretary's Department and
New Issues and Registrars Department is that the one is concerned with the
Bank's own shares, whereas the other does the same kind of work for a fee for
other companies. The Registrars section
started in 1946 and has grown steadily, Penguin Books being one of the latest
registrarships to be undertaken. The New Issues Section came into being in
1934 with a basic staff of two. The section handles all types of new issue
work on behalf of customers of the Bank, including public offers for sale,
rights issues, bonus issues, take-overs, placings, etc. Last year 22 new
issues of various kinds were handled. This year, up to the half year, 18 had
been or were being handled. The staff of the
department covering both sections of the work is 45, of which 26 are men and
19 women, and as the work is inter-related one side is often called in to
assist the other. This brings us to the Penguin issue. Some idea of the
magnitude of this job can be gained from the figures. The staff had to be
increased temporarily to over 400 to deal with some 150,000 applications for
shares. |
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The Entrance and Reception Area Images © Barclays
Ref 0030-0673
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The rigidity of the schedule in these operations inevitably
involves a lot of late work. In the case of the Penguin issue, for example,
where 690,000 shares were on offer, some 150,000 separate applications,
accompanied by cheques, were received, amounting to over £67,000,000, the issue being over-subscribed
150 times. The applications began to pour in on April 25th and the allotment
had to be made and unsuccessful applications returned so that dealings on the
Stock Exchange could commence on May 1st. But let us
look for a moment at the mechanics of this particular exercise, as the
pattern is the same for any offer for sale though the volume will vary. On
the first day the ordinary staff of the department, augmented by 20 relief
staff, took until midday to open the post. In the afternoon the applications,
18,324 of them, for over 12 million shares, were sorted, and in the evening,
it took a staff of 20 to summarise them. |
By the third day of the Penguin
Issue, queues formed in Gresham Street, causing the police to
complain that it was an obstruction |
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In other words, the issue was over-subscribed 18 times two days
before the List officially opened. On the second day there were 17 sacks of
mail. Opening started at 8 a.m., with about the same staff as on the first
day. After 9 a.m., further staff were called in from Lombard Street and local
branches to continue opening the post, a job which lasted until 1 p.m.
Sorting then commenced, additional sacks of mail which kept arriving being
held over until the evening. An additional staff of 40 were occupied all
afternoon and evening until 10 p.m., sorting. On this day 54,000 applications
were dealt with, the issue now being over-subscribed 82 times. On the third day the staff started work at 7.30 a.m.,
with 30 additional staff opening 26 sacks of mail from 8 a.m. After 9 a.m.,
the number of staff had to be increased to 120 and between 9 and 10a.m., the
counter was extremely busy with a queue into Gresham Street which caused a
complaint from the police that an obstruction was being caused. At this
stage, owing to the volume of applications received, sorting into
denominations was discontinued and applications were put into bundles of
approximately 500 in each bundle. This work continued until 9 p.m. On the fourth day, April 28th, the inevitable ballot took
place for the 3,450 applications which were all that could succeed. This was
conducted by a Notary Public He brought two of his own staff and needed 20 of
ours.
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The queue for the Penguin Issue as
seen from behind the counter |
He started work at 1 p.m., and finished the main part by 5 p.m.,
leaving a member of his staff until 7.30 p.m., to deal with queries. The rest
of our staff worked late preparing for the work to be done the following day.
On Saturday, April 29th, the staff worked until 9.30 p.m., in connection with
the clearing of cheques, preparation of the Letters of Acceptance, and return
of cheques to the unsuccessful applicants. In addition to the staff at
Clements House, 187 were engaged at Lombard Street in returning application
forms and cheques together with a letter of regret to the unsuccessful
applicants. On Sunday, April 30th the work continued, with the staff of the
department working at Clements House, 200 working at Lombard Street and 150
at Gracechurch Street finishing off the letters, bagging them and getting
them into the Sunday afternoon post. |
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That the work was completed on time was
due in large measure to the co-operation received from the staff of the
department and the many volunteers, including non-clerical staff, who worked
willingly and well during the whole period, and the expedition with which the
work was carried out aroused favourable comment in the City and brought a
complimentary letter from Sir Allen Lane, Chairman of Penguin Books. And what
of the men who organise and run the work of this department?
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The Manager is Mr. F. V. Donne, and it
is interesting to note that he and Sir Allen Lane both commenced their
banking experience with Cocks Biddulph branch in the old days (on opposite
sides of the counter, of course). Mr. Donne started there as a junior in 1928. In 1939 he went to Swanley and from 1940-45
he was in the R.A.F., as a wireless instructor for the greater part of the time.
On demobilisation he went to Bruton Street, being appointed Pro Manager there
in 1948. He became a visiting Inspector at London District Office in 1955 and
was appointed Manager of New Issues and Registrars Department in 1958. To help him he has Mr. W. Cowan as Pro
Manager with full signing authority, and Mr. W. Hanson, Mr. L. H. Wilson and
Mr. H. G. F. Bartlett as Pro Managers with internal authority. |
1961 - New Issues and
Registrars Department Front Row (left to right}: D J Hack G L Barrett K A Williamson H G F Bartlett Miss K M Powell L H Wilson Miss A Pretty Mr F V
Donne (Manager) Mrs P A Wilson W Cowan Miss P A Longstaff
E J A Salmon P J L Drummond M V Stevenson N C R Lee Second Row: A Whitmey Miss E M Edwards G C Walls Miss M K Morton N S Wise
Miss M Holland D A F Sonfield Miss P J Woodward J R Howard Miss P Baker H W Cowlev
Miss J A Reid J P Massey Miss A E Watson J I Holt Third Row: I) M Ward Miss M C Dawson RJ Heaton Mrs I Jackson D A Mitchell
Miss D Jones J L M Short Mrs J Wiles D H Barrett Miss M Wallers N Stuart
Fourth Row: R Elliott C Allen Miss E M Cussen Mrs L Abley
Miss R P Herbert A L Hill Miss P Friend Mrs P P Winner I D Williams T Jones (The group includes some extra staff drafted in from
other Districts) |
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The senior lady members of the staff of
the department are Mrs. Patricia Wilson in the New Issues Section, Miss Ann
Pretty, who is the Manager's Secretary, Miss Kathleen Powell in the
Registrars' Section, and Miss Patricia Longstaff who is in charge of the
Addressograph Section.All this is a side of banking with which most of us
have no contact, but the story of the Penguin issue contains a lesson for us
all—that working as a
cheerful, willing team with the example of fair-minded and efficient
leadership before us, there is really nothing we cannot tackle. At the time of writing, in addition to normal Registrars
work, the department is engaged in dealing with and preparing for seven
Rights Issues, one Debenture Stock Placing, an Offer for Sale, two Bonus
Issues, a Capital Reorganisation involving a Share exchange and cash payment,
and one Takeover operation.
Mr Donne takes his leave… When Mr Donne retires
after forty-one years with the Bank – the last eleven of those as manager of
New Issues and Registrars Department -
his friends and colleagues really do come from far and wide to Gresham
House to wish him well. It appears he is liked and respected not only by his
departmental colleagues, but also by his contemporaries and opposite numbers
within the other clearing bankers and in industrial companies as well. As ever, the retirement of someone of Mr
Donne’s standing attracts a generous article in Martins Bank Magazine – as we
now read below – taken from the very last edition of the Magazine before
Barclays’ own version “Spread Eagle” takes over…
Mr Donne's
41 years' service had all been spent in London District, with five years in
H.M. Forces. Although he had requested no formal presentation his many
friends were unable to let the occasion pass without giving tangible
expression to the affection and regard felt for him, and Mr Hanson presented
him with a silver hors d'oeuvres dish, a cheque and a book of signatures. Mrs
Donne received a bouquet and a leather notecase. In his speech of thanks Mr
Donne expressed gratitude for the support given to him at all levels, citing
as an example the weekend when 450 staff came to work at short notice on a
particularly active new issue. The previous week Mr Donne had been presented
with a pair of silver candelabra when he lunched with the registrars of
several clearing banks and industrial companies.
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