National Bank of Belgium

The National Bank of Belgium (NBB; Dutch: Nationale Bank van België, French: Banque nationale de Belgique, German: Belgische Nationalbank) has been the central bank of Belgium since 1850. The National Bank of Belgium was established with 100% private capital by a law of 5 May 1850 as a naamloze vennootschap (NV). It is a member of the European System of Central Banks and the Eurosystem. Until January 1999 when Belgium adopted the euro, the bank was responsible for the former national currency, the Belgian franc.

Not to be confused with Banque de Belgique.
National Bank of Belgium
Nationale Bank van België (in Dutch)
Banque nationale de Belgique (in French)
Belgische Nationalbank (in German)
HeadquartersBrussels
Established5 May 1850
OwnershipGovernment of Belgium (50%)
Public float (50%)[1]
Traded as:
Euronext Brussels: BNB
GovernorPierre Wunsch
Central bank ofBelgium
Reserves8 450 million USD[1]
Succeeded byEuropean Central Bank (1999)1
Websitewww.nbb.be
1 The National Bank of Belgium still exists but many functions have been taken over by the ECB.

The Governor of the National Bank is a member of the Governing Council, the main decision-making body of the Eurosystem, particularly as regards monetary policy; the National Bank of Belgium participates in the preparation and execution of its decisions.

Apart from monetary policy, the National Bank of Belgium takes on other tasks which can be classified as follows:

  • the issuance of euro banknotes
  • the printing of euro banknotes and the placing in circulation of euro coins
  • the management of foreign currency reserves
  • the collection, circulation and analysis of economic and financial information
  • the stability of the Belgian financial sector – see also CBFA
  • the role of financial ambassador to international economic institutions
  • services for the Belgian State
  • services for the Belgian financial sector
  • services for the general public

50% of the NBB stock is freely traded on Euronext Brussels, the other 50% of the shares are owned by the Belgian government. (400.000 shares in total). In September 2022, the quotation of the NBB stock was suspended after its stock price collapsed due to information that the bank would make losses.[2]

Governors

Meeting of the Administrative Council of the National Bank (1918) by Herman Richir

Vice-Governors

(List to be expanded)

See also

References
  1. Weidner, Jan (2017). "The Organisation and Structure of Central Banks" (PDF). Katalog der Deutschen Nationalbibliothek.
  2. "Bourse de Bruxelles: l'action de la BNB suspendue". Le Soir (in French). 21 September 2022. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
  3. "Pierre Wunsch – nbb.be". www.nbb.be.

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