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wildcat bank

American  

noun

  1. a bank that issued notes without adequate security in the period before the establishment of the national banking system in 1864.

Etymology

Origin of wildcat bank

An Americanism dating back to 1830–40

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

This behavior is clearly that of a “wildcat bank,” a 1800s fraudulent banking style that has long been illegal.

From Slate

Well, I can't go back to him and resume, no more'n a wildcat bank.

From Project Gutenberg

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.