First National of Nebraska

First National of Nebraska had its roots in the construction of First National Bank of Omaha's headquarters building, First National Center, in the 1960s. It was determined that total expenses, including the $2.5 million already paid to Woodmen of the World and adjoining property owners for land, would come to $13.9 million. It became necessary for First National to reorganize as a holding company due to statutory limitations on the amount of money a bank is allowed to invest in brick and mortar. The U.S. Code draws the line at 50 percent of the financial institution's capital and surplus account. However, the investment in First National Center was equivalent, literally, to First National's entire net worth. A parent corporation, acting technically in its own name and on its own behalf, can go ahead and incur a sizable debt for construction purposes without running afoul of federal law, as long as it owns at least 80 percent of its subsidiary's stock. With that in mind, First National Bank's directors created and its shareholders approved First National of Nebraska, Inc.