Bank Branches › Closed and merged banks › California › Tokai Bank of California
What happened to Tokai Bank of California?
Tokai Bank of California in Los Angeles, CA (earlier called Centinela Bank) merged into Sanwa Bank California of Los Angeles, CA on Jul 2, 2001. After 2 more changes of hands, what was Tokai Bank of California is today part of BMO Bank National Association (Chicago, IL).
The chain, step by step
From the day it opened to the bank at the end of the chain today. Each step is one entry in the FDIC's record.
- 1963Centinela Bank opens in Los Angeles, CA
- Aug 15, 1975renamed Tokai Bank of California
- Jul 2, 2001MERGEDTokai Bank of California merged into Sanwa Bank California of Los Angeles, CA.FDIC certificate 18825 ends; its business continues under certificate 20589.
- Apr 1, 2002MERGEDSanwa Bank California (by then renamed United California Bank) of Los Angeles, CA merged into Bank of the West of San Francisco, CA.FDIC certificate 20589 ends; its business continues under certificate 3514.
- Feb 2, 2023MERGEDBank of the West of San Francisco, CA merged into BMO Harris Bank National Association of Chicago, IL.FDIC certificate 3514 ends; its business continues under certificate 16571.
- TodayOPEN
BMO Bank National AssociationMain office Chicago, IL · FDIC certificate 16571 · 988 offices in 23 states on June 30, 2026Every BMO Bank National Association office → Website on file with the FDIC: www.bmo.com
If you still have something from Tokai Bank of California
A lien that was never released
If a paid-off mortgage, home-equity line or car loan still shows Tokai Bank of California as lienholder, start with BMO Bank National Association. In a merger the surviving bank takes over the other bank's loans, so it is the bank to ask for a recordable lien release; if the loan was sold along the way, it can tell you to whom.
The FDIC says it cannot process lien releases for banks that merged or were acquired without government assistance, which is what the record shows here.
Record the release with the same county office that recorded the original mortgage or deed of trust.
An old account, passbook or CD
Ask BMO Bank National Association to search for the account under the name Tokai Bank of California. A passbook or certificate shows an account existed. It doesn't show the money is still there, and the OCC notes that federal rules require banks to keep most account records for five years.
Accounts nobody touches are eventually turned over to a state. The OCC puts the usual wait at three to five years with no activity, set by each state's law. Search the unclaimed-property program of the state of the owner's last known address on the bank's records, and any other state they lived in. It is free to search and to claim through a state's own site, and MissingMoney.com, an official site of the state administrators' association, searches most states at once.
A safe deposit box
Ask BMO Bank National Association which branch now holds boxes from the Tokai Bank of California office you used. The OCC says a box with no activity for three to five years (the period is set by state statute) is likely treated as dormant, and its contents may be turned over to the state's unclaimed-property program.
Box contents are not covered by FDIC insurance.
Not sure this is your bank?
Many banks shared a name. Match the city and the years above against your paperwork, or search again with the town.
Credit unions were never FDIC-insured and are not in this record; the NCUA credit union lookup covers those. Banks that closed before about 1970 are not in the FDIC's list either.
One caution: banks also sell single branches. If the office you used was sold to a different bank along the way, the account went with the branch, not with this chain. The office list below shows which bank each office reports under now.
This page is drawn from FDIC records and federal guidance. It is not legal advice, and BankBranches is not a bank or a government office. More detail: lien releases · old passbooks and CDs · safe deposit boxes · unclaimed money.
Where the guidance comes from ▾
Its offices in the FDIC deposit reports
16 offices filed under this charter in some year from 1994 on. 6 are still open as of June 30, 2026.
| Office | Now |
|---|---|
| 300 S Grand AveLos Angeles, CA | OpenBMO Bank National Association |
| 505 Montgomery StSan Francisco, CA | OpenBMO Bank National Association |
| 19006 Brookhurst StHuntington Beach, CA | OpenBMO Bank National Association |
| 123 Astronaut E S Onizuka St, Ste 101Los Angeles, CA | OpenBMO Bank National Association |
| 16027 Ventura Blvd, Ste 100Encino, CA | OpenBMO Bank National Association |
| 19191 S Vermont Ave, Ste 150Torrance, CA | OpenBMO Bank National Association |
| 800 North Haven AvenueOntario, CA | No longer reported |
| 9934 East Las Tunas DriveTemple City, CA | No longer reported |
| 333 South Garfield AvenueAlhambra, CA | No longer reported |
| 4350 LA Jolla Village Drive,San Diego, CA | No longer reported |
| 18831 Von Karmen AvenueIrvine, CA | No longer reported |
| 2500 Venture Oaks Way, Suite 175Sacramento, CA | No longer reported |
| 8000 West Manchester AvenueLos Angeles, CA | No longer reported |
| 200 East Colorado BoulevardPasadena, CA | No longer reported |
| 3111 Camino Del Rio NorthSan Diego, CA | No longer reported |
| 2300 West Valley BoulevardAlhambra, CA | No longer reported |
Banks folded into Tokai Bank of California
2 banks merged directly into this charter.
| Bank | Ended |
|---|---|
| Continental BankAlhambra, CA | Jan 4, 1982 |
| Tokai Bank of CaliforniaLos Angeles, CA | Aug 15, 1975 |
Source: FDIC BankFind institution and history records, read Nov 15, 2026. The FDIC's list covers banks that ended in about 1970 or later. Look up certificate 18825 in the FDIC BankFind Suite to see the government's own entry. Corrections: me@byclaude.net.