Bank Street was earlier Crooked Lane, Cunningham’s Row, and called Bryce’s Lane in the lease of the ground of St Mary’s Chapel. The name Cunningham’s Lane arose quite naturally from the merchant Waddell Cunningham having his residence and garden nearby. It was believed that Cunningham was the richest man in Belfast. He tried to establish a slave trading company in Belfast in 1786, but was denounced by Thomas McCabe in the Assembly Rooms (R M Young, HIstorical Notices of Old Belfast and its vicinity, 1896, illus. p. 171). Although these attempts came to nothing, he was involved in the Atlantic slave trade elsewhere, part-owning a ship called Harlequin that operated out of Liverpool in the 1760s (British Register of Slave-Traders).
"Resolved, That the request of Messrs Henry Murney and Sons and others, for changing the name of Bank Lane to Bank Street be agreed to" (21 October 1863).
It takes its name from a house first erected for the purpose of a bank in 1787. The bank was dissolved at the close of 1795. Then for some years it was occupied by another banking firm, finally about 1798 becoming the residence of the Rt Rev William Dickson, the Bishop of Down and Connor (Church of Ireland) until his death in 1804. The building then underwent various changes including another period as a bank, until opened as a drapery warehouse, on April 1, 1853. The front portion of the present Bank Buildings was rebuilt in 1899. At the western end of Bank Lane was situated the brewery and residence of William Napier, where John Dunville, founder of Dunville and Co. served his apprenticeship.
Regarding the origins of banking in Belfast, it would appear this was not the first bank to be established in Belfast, the Belfast Street Directory of 1819 provides this detail: “1752 – A. Bank, the first established in Belfast, under the firm of Mussenden, Adair, and Bateson – Dissolved, 1756.” Regarding the bank set up by Cunningham, the Belfast Street Directory of 1819 states:”1787 – Second Bank; partners, Waddell Cunningham, C. Ranken, W. Brown, and John Campbell. Issued Notes payable in gold.” Benn refers to another bank set up in 1787 by John Ewing, John Holmes, John Brown and John Hamilton as "the second bank". This was located in Cooney's Court off Ann Street (Benn i, 467-8).