The Central Bank of Greece was established in 1927 under the Presidency of the Republic of Pavlos Kountouriotis and the Prime Ministry of Alexandros Zaimis, based on Article 4 of the Geneva Protocol. The proposal for the creation of the central bank was made by the League of Nations in order to support the efforts of the Greek government to deal with the serious economic and financial problems of the time. The Geneva Protocol provided for the approval of a loan of 9,000,000 pounds sterling and was signed between the Governments of France, Great Britain and Italy on the one hand and the Government of Greece on the other.

Its operations began today, on 14 May 1928, with Alexandros Diomedes as its first Commandant and a staff of 500 men. From then until the replacement of the national currency by the euro in 2002, the Bank of Greece had the exclusive privilege of issuing banknotes.

Thereafter, the Bank opened a number of Agencies and Branches mainly to supply local markets with paper money and to carry out payments and/or collections on behalf of the State.
Assets (mainly gold and Treasury bonds) and liabilities (the issued banknotes and in particular the Treasury deposits) were transferred from the National Bank to the new central bank.

As stated in Article 4 of the original Statute of the Bank of Greece “the main task of the Bank is to ensure the stability of the gold value of its bills. To this end it shall, within the limits of its Statute, regulate circulation and credit in Greece’.

On 4 April 1938 the main building at 21 Eleftheriou Venizelos (Panepistimiou) Street was inaugurated. Until 1938 the Bank was housed in the building of the Land Bank at 28 Eleftheriou Venizelou (Panepistimiou) Street. The Bank’s main building (6,025 m2) is located in the heart of Athens, at 21 Eleftheriou Venizelou Street, and is a representative example of the academic expression of the architecture of public buildings in Greece between the wars.

During the foundation of the Bank’s main branch on 20 November 1933, its then Governor, Emmanuel Tsouderos, in keeping with the custom of ‘gold-plating’, placed ancient coins from various historical periods and regions of the country in a crystal container on the foundations of the building: From Knossos in Crete to ancient Macedonia, without, of course, overlooking the coin of ancient Athens with the depiction of Athena, which is a symbol of the Bank itself. In keeping with the custom of the amulet given to newborns, Emmanuel Tsouderos also placed a golden Byzantine coin of Saints Constantine and Helen in the container.

Opposite the entrance to the Bank’s central treasury is a small chapel and, in the wall, a mosaic composition by the Italian artist Amedeo Madellaro, based on the work of the painter Agenora Asteriadis “Saint Constantine and Saint Helen”, with which the Bank honoured the gesture of its then Governor.

After the Second World War, the building was extended initially to Homer and Edouard Lo streets and later, in the 1970s, to Stadiou Street, thus occupying the entire block. Another floor was added to the building in 1982.

In 1989, by decision of the Ministry of Culture, the building was designated a historical monument.