The Bank of Greece ( , ΤτΕ) is the central bank of Greece, established in 1927. It is a member of the European System of Central Banks (ESCB). Its headquarters is located in Athens on Panepistimiou Street, and it also has several branches across the country. Unlike most contemporary central banks, the Bank of Greece still has private shareholders and its stock is listed on the Athens Exchange.
History
The Bank of Greece was established by Law 3424/7 December 1927, under the conditions of the stabilization loan coordinated by the Economic and Financial Organization of the League of Nations, and its operations started officially in 1928. The shares of the Bank of Greece are registered and have been listed on the Athens Exchange since June 12, 1930.
The building that currently houses its headquarters was completed ten years later in 1938.
Until January 2001 (when Greece adopted the euro) the bank was responsible for the former national currency, the drachma. Greece had failed to meet the membership criteria and was excluded from participating when the euro was launched on 1 January 1999. Use of physical drachma notes and coins continued until 31 December 2001, as denominations of the euro.
Ownership and operations
The Bank of Greece is a partially state owned S.A. share company with special privileges, special restrictions, and duties. It cannot operate as a commercial bank and the percentage of shares that can be under Greek state ownership cannot exceed 35% (initially this limit was 10%). It has a staff of more than 1,800 employees.
The primary objective of the Bank of Greece is to ensure price stability in Greece. It also supervises the private banks and acts as a treasurer and fiscal agent for the Greek government. Since law 3867/2010 was passed the Bank of Greece is also responsible for supervising private insurance companies, merging with the Committee for the Supervision of Insurance Companies established by law 3229/2004.
Its Euro banknotes printer identification code is Y.
The Bank of Greece also sells gold sovereigns.
Leadership
Governors
The chief officer of the Bank of Greece is the Governor (, ), a governmental appointee.
a During the Axis occupation of Greece (1941–44), Governor Kyriakos Varvaresos followed the Greek government in exile to London. The collaborationist governments in Greece fired Varvaresos in 1941 and appointed first Miltiadis Negrepontis as Governing Counsellor (April 24, 1941 – July 3, 1941) and then Dimitrios Santis (July 3, 1941 – January 20, 1943) and finally Theodoros Tourkovasilis (April 19, 1943 – April 13, 1944) as Governors. After the liberation all dismissals and appointments by occupation-era governments concerning members of the administration of the Bank of Greece were declared null and void.
Deputy governors
The Deputy Governor () is the Bank's second-in-line officer. Traditionally the Deputy Governors' main remit is administration, whereas Governors supervise monetary policy at large.