Before establishing its modern identity as a major multi-state national commercial banking organization under the Citizens Financial Group umbrella, the enterprise operated for over a century and a half under its historic charter name, the Providence Institution for Savings. Founded in Providence, Rhode Island, in 1828, it was among the earliest mutual savings institutions established in the United States. As the bank grew through strategic acquisitions of neighboring community banks and regional institutions throughout New England, Pennsylvania, and the Midwest, the corporate leadership adopted the Citizens name to better represent its expanding customer base, eventually dropping the historic savings institution moniker entirely as it scaled into a top-tier national bank.