Banco de Portugal

The Banco de Portugal (English: Bank of Portugal) is the central bank of the Portuguese Republic. The bank was founded by royal charter in 1846, during the reign of Queen Maria II of Portugal, by a merger of the Banco de Lisboa (Bank of Lisbon), the first bank founded in Portugal, and the Companhia Confiança Nacional (National Insurance Company), making it one of the oldest banks in continuous operation in the world. It is a full member of the Eurosystem and the European System of Central Banks. Until January 1999, when Portugal adopted the euro, the bank was responsible for the former Portuguese currency, the escudo.

Banco de Portugal
(Bank of Portugal)
HeadquartersLisbon, Portugal
Coordinates38.708729°N 9.138148°W / 38.708729; -9.138148
Established19 November 1846 (1846-11-19)
Ownership100% state ownership[1]
GovernorMário Centeno[2]
Central bank ofPortugal
Reserves4 980 million USD[1]
Preceded byBanco de Lisboa
Companhia de Confiança Nacional
Succeeded byEuropean Central Bank (1999)1
Websitewww.bportugal.pt
1 The Bank of Portugal still exists but many functions have been taken over by the ECB.

History
The Banco de Portugal is the successor to the Banco de Lisboa, the first bank established in Portugal.

Foundation

Queen Maria II of Portugal established the bank by royal charter on 19 November 1846 to act as a commercial bank and issuing bank, it came about as the result of a merger of the Banco de Lisboa, the first bank founded in Portugal, and the Companhia de Confiança Nacional, an investment company specialised in the financing of the public debt.

The bank was designated by the Portuguese Crown as the emitter of legal tender, at the time the Portuguese real, which it continued producing until 1911.

Republic
The Banco de Portugal building on the Avenida dos Aliados in Porto.

Following the Implementation of the Republic in 1910, the Banco de Portugal began to emit the Portuguese Escudo.

In 1932, the bank established the Biblioteca do Banco de Portugal, one of the most significant private libraries in Portugal.

In 1946, the institution was bestowed the honor of Grand Cross of the Order of Christ by the President of Portugal.

During the Estado Novo, the bank pursued a vigorous policy of gold acquisition starting in 1957, which has contributed towards Portugal's present-day status of having the 14th largest gold reserve in the world.

Nationalization
The Banco de Portugal branch in Braga.
The Museu do Dinheiro (Museum of Money) at the Banco de Portugal's headquarters in Lisbon's Baixa.

Following its nationalisation in September 1974 and its new Organic Law (1975), the Banco de Portugal was, for the first time, responsible for the supervision of the banking system.

It is an integral part of the European System of Central Banks, which was founded in June 1998.

The Banco de Portugal ceased emission of the Portuguese Escudo in 1999, with the country's adoption of the Euro.

Contemporary

In 2013, the bank announced that it would pay €359 million in dividends, referring to the year of 2012.[3]

In 2014, the bank announced that it would pay €202 million in dividends, referring to the year of 2013, representing a steep decline in comparison to 2012.[4]

In August 2014, Banco de Portugal announced it was restructuring Portugal's second biggest bank, Banco Espirito Santo, by splitting the bank in two. During the bank restructure, one of the lenders, Oak Finance, had its loan liabilities remain with Banco Espirito Santo. This triggered a lawsuit from a group of investors including: hedge funds and the New Zealand Superannuation Fund.[5]

Governors
Bank offices in Lisbon.
Bank offices in Lisbon.
Branch in Viseu.
Branch in Castelo Branco.
Branch in Coimbra.
Branch in Faro.
Branch in Évora.
Branch in Funchal.
Branch in Leiria.

Prior to 1887, the Banco de Portugal was governed by a chairman of the board. Since then, the administration has been entrusted to the governor of the Banco de Portugal.[6]

# Name Portrait Term
1st António Augusto Pereira de Miranda
1887–1891
2nd Pedro Augusto de Carvalho
1891–1894
3nd Júlio de Vilhena
1895–1907
4th José Adolfo de Mello e Sousa
1907–1910
5th Inocêncio Camacho
1911–1936
Between 1936 and 1957, the Banco de Portugal operated without a governor.
6th Rafael da Silva Neves Duque
1957–1963
7th António Pinto Barbosa
1966–1974
8th Manuel Jacinto Nunes
1974–1975
9th José da Silva Lopes
1975–1980
10th Manuel Jacinto Nunes
1980–1985
11th Vítor Constâncio
1985–1986
12th Tavares Moreira
1986–1992
13th Luís Miguel Couceiro Pizarro Beleza
1992–1994
14th António José Fernandes de Sousa
1994–2000
15th Vítor Constâncio
2000–2010
16th Carlos da Silva Costa
2010–2020
17th Mário Centeno
2020–

See also

References
  1. Weidner, Jan (2017). "The Organisation and Structure of Central Banks" (PDF). Katalog der Deutschen Nationalbibliothek.
  2. "Centeno official and the new governor of the Bank of Portugal". jornaleconomico.sapo.pt. Archived from the original on 20 July 2020. Retrieved 20 July 2020.
  3. "Banco de Portugal entrega 359 milhões ao Estado em dividendos após forte subida nos lucros".
  4. "Banco de Portugal vai dar 202 milhões em dividendos ao Estado - Expresso.pt". expresso.sapo.pt. Archived from the original on 22 May 2014.
  5. "Sovereign Wealth Fund Takes Legal Action Against Banco de Portugal Over Costly Debt Transfer". Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute. 20 February 2015. Archived from the original on 23 March 2015. Retrieved 8 March 2015.
  6. "Governors past and present". www.bportugal.pt.
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