Barclays plc is a major global financial services firm operating in Europe, North America, the Middle East, Latin America, Australia, Asia and Africa. It is a holding company that is listed on the London, New York stock exchanges, and was listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange until 2008. It is also a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. It operates through its subsidiary Barclays Bank plc.

Barclays PLC is ranked as the 25th largest company in the world according to Forbes Global 2000 (2008 list) and the fourth largest financial services provider in the world according to Tier 1 capital ($32.5 billion). It is the second largest bank in the United Kingdom based on asset size, although its share price, having fallen by 40% in the past year as of 10 May 2009 (2009 -05-10), is considerably lower as a result of a fall in investor confidence.

The bank's headquarters are at One Churchill Place in Canary Wharf, in London's Docklands, having moved there in May 2005 from Lombard Street in the City of London. The company also operates Barclays Bank of Delaware, which issues Juniper credit cards, one of the largest issuers of credit cards in the United States.