Question: What is this British multinational banking and financial services company that operates a network of over 1,000 branches across dozens of countries that was formed in 1969 after merging of a few companies?

Context articles: Standard Bank (historic)
ICICI Bank
United Bank (Pakistan)
Barclays
HSBC
Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation
Punjab National Bank
Standard Chartered
John Peace
Société Générale

The Standard Bank was a British overseas bank, which operated mainly in Africa from 1863 to 1969.
 It merged with the Chartered Bank in 1969 to form Standard Chartered.
ICICI Bank, stands for Industrial Credit and Investment Corporation of India, is an Indian multinational banking and financial services company headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India, with its registered office in Vadodara.
 In 2014, it was the second largest bank in India in terms of assets and third in term of market capitalisation.
 It offers a wide range of banking products and financial services for corporate and retail customers through a variety of delivery channels and specialised subsidiaries in the areas of investment banking, life, non-life insurance, venture capital and asset management.
 The bank has a network of 4,850 branches and 14,404 ATMs in India, and has a presence in 19 countries including India.
United Bank Limited (UBL) is a Karachi based commercial bank.
 As one of Pakistan’s largest banks in the private sector, the Bank operates a network of over 1,385 branches across Pakistan and 19 branches overseas.
 With a customer base of over 4 million, it leads the banking and financial services sector in Pakistan.
 Customers across the world have 24/7 access to the bank via UBL's internet banking facilities.
Barclays PLC is a British multinational bank and financial services company headquartered in London.
 It is a universal bank with global reach, offering products and services across personal, corporate and investment banking, credit cards and wealth management.
 It has operations in over 40 countries and employs approximately 120,000 people.
 Barclays is organised into four core businesses: Personal & Corporate (Personal Banking, Corporate Banking, Wealth & Investment Management), Barclaycard, Investment Banking and Africa.
HSBC Holdings PLC is a British multinational banking and financial services holding company, tracing its origin to a hong in Hong Kong.
 It is the world's seventh largest bank by total assets and the largest in Europe with total assets of US$2.374 trillion (as of December 2016).
 It was established in its present form in London in 1991 by The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited to act as a new group holding company.
 The origins of the bank lie mainly in Hong Kong and to a lesser extent in Shanghai, where branches were first opened in 1865.
 The HSBC name is derived from the initials of the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation.
 The company was first formally incorporated in 1866.
 The company continues to see both the United Kingdom and Hong Kong as its "home markets".
Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC; 株式会社三井住友銀行 , Kabushikigaisha mitsui sumitomo ginkō ) is a Japanese multinational banking and financial services company headquartered in Yurakucho, Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan.
 It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group.
 SMBC is the second largest bank in Japan by assets.
Punjab National Bank (PNB) is an Indian multinational banking and financial services company.
 It is a state-owned corporation based in New Delhi, India.
 The bank was founded in 1894.
 As of 31 March 2017 the bank has over 80 million customers, 6,937 branches, and 10681 ATMs across 764 cities.
Standard Chartered PLC is a British multinational banking and financial services company headquartered in London, England.
 It operates a network of more than 1,200 branches and outlets (including subsidiaries, associates and joint ventures) across more than 70 countries and employs around 87,000 people.
 It is a universal bank with operations in consumer, corporate and institutional banking, and treasury services.
 Despite its UK base, it does not conduct retail banking in the UK, and around 90% of its profits come from Asia, Africa and the Middle East.
Sir John Wilfred Peace (born 2 March 1949) is a British businessman, chairman of British fashion house Burberry and ex-chairman of Standard Chartered, a British multinational banking and financial services company.
Société Générale S.A. is a French multinational banking and financial services company headquartered in Paris.
 The company is a universal bank and has divisions supporting French Networks, Global Transaction Banking, International Retail Banking, Financial services, Corporate and Investment Banking, Private Banking, Asset Management and Securities Services.